Fire in the Night
by silverlilyvenom
Summary: After a double tragedy, Kagome is left alone and only one person cough-Inuyasha-can make the pain go away. But as usual he's a no show. In his leave the unthinkable happens-what could make Kagome pine for Sesshoumaru? Is Kagome literally losing her mind?
1. Chapter 1

**Hey, so I woke up sick this morning and to take my mind off things, decided to write! Just a warning, but the story won't give a way anything and if it does I'll warn you first*******SPOILER****** This takes place during the final act after Kikyo dies, but before they defeat Naraku. Also, every time you see a 4 pound keys in a row, it means that POV flip flops from Kagome to Inuyasha or vice versa. This chapter starts off with Kagome.**

**Enjoy!**

"That's it!" I fumed, bending to reach for my yellow backpack.

"Oh, c'mon Kagome. You know I didn't mean it!" A clawed hand grabbed my shoulder and pulled me to a stop. I took a deep breath, trying in vain to calm myself, and in one swift motion, snatched the hand and flung it to the side.

"Could've fooled me. Osuwari!" I yelled.

"SHIT!"

Shouldering my pack, I fought back the smile that slinked along my lips as a weak 'Kagome' sounded from the fresh hole in the floor. Knowing I had some sort of power over Inuyasha was satisfying, but more often than not, I felt guilty for doing so. I was voluntarily, slamming another person into the ground, hurting them. Inuyasha's a hanyou so 'sitting' him couldn't hurt too terribly bad-the blow to his pride probably hurt more than the actual 'sit'- but being forced into a face plant nonetheless couldn't feel to fantastically wonderful.

Crossing the small hut, I noticed the looks of praise and thanks Sango and Shippo gave me and even the thumbs up from Miroku. _I guess not everyone is that torn up._

The wood from Kaede's destroyed floor shifted and creaked. "Kagome!" Inuyasha grumbled, "What the hell-"

I immediately stopped walking, the corners of my mouth, which had been tiptoeing upward, quickly slipped back into a frown. Slowly turning, I faced Inuyasha, who, presently, was on his knees donning a look of sheer terror. His wide, amber eyes were huge and blinking nervously, his soft, white ears holding unbelievably still.

"Uhh, Kagome?" he asked, wary of his words.

Let's just say I was NOT in a very regretful OR forgiving mood today.

"Osuwari! Osuwari! OSUWARI!"

I spun on my heel and marched out of the hut, flinging the fabric door open on my way out. I stomped through the tiny village, baffling adults with a single look of fury and scaring more than a few small children. Soon, the little town was nothing but a small speck in the distance as I stormed along the dirt road up the hill, a cloud of dust trailing in my wake. I was shaking, practically sweating, and definitely NOT ( initiate:sarcasm) almost frothing at the mouth with anger. My vision spotted with dark pinpoints of black. So caught up in my fury (not to mention picturing Inuyasha's head on a stick) was I, the quick, approaching caught me off guard.

"Kagome!" Shippo cried, "Wait up!"

Not slowing down one bit, I forged on. If I stopped to talk, even for a second, I knew the little guy would have _me _somehow begging for _Inuyasha's_ forgiveness. I have to admit, though, I was pretty surprised when Shippo ran in front of my dirt tempest and held up both hands in a 'stop' position. I was so startled-and I hate to say it-I tripped over the poor fox demon, doing my own face plant.

"Kagome, where are you going?" he asked, perfectly fine, as I lay on the ground, spitting mud.

Completely ignoring the question, I asked, getting up, "Shippo, are you okay? Oh, geez, I'm so sorry! I didn't land on you, did I?"

"Kagome, I'm fine, but…" he trailing off, eyes shining.

I pulled myself to my knees, trying my best to shake the dirt from my white school blouse and failing. "Shippo," I said, glancing at the substantial dirt stain up and down my front, "Are you sure you're all right?"

"Why do you always leaves us, Kagome?" he yelled, a small tear tracking down his face.

I was flabbergasted. Shippo was one of the strongest kids I knew and not once had I seen him cry when I was leaving. How was this time any different? He had been there when everything went down just minutes before. Did our fight seem that bad to the onlooker as it actually was for me? "What?" I asked, confused.

"That's what you're doing, right? You were running to the well to get away from us! Just because you and Inuyasha had a fight again doesn't mean you have to go!"

"Shippo, no. I wasn't running from you. I would never run from you." _Though I can't say the same for everyone else,_ I thought to myself, eye twitching.

"Kagome, you're lying through your teeth," he said, crossing his arms.

Even a seven year old could read right through me. "Only a little. I would never leave _you_, Shippo. I promise." _That's a promise I don't know if I'll be able to keep for much longer._

"Just because, I'm little, does it mean I'm a baka like Inuyasha," he replied. "Besides, you're too nice for your own good. You couldn't lie if you tried," he finished, smirking.

A sad smile flashed across my face for half a second, but was gone almost as soon as it came. I hugged Shippo, and pulling away, let my hands rest on his shoulders. I looked straight into his clear, green eyes and gently whispered, "Bye, Shippo."

"You'll be back soon, right Kagome?" he asked, innocence swaddling his voice.

I wasn't going to bother even attempting to fib. I broke eye contact to stare off towards the trees, "I have to go."

Quickly I stood, and began to jog off into the woods. Head bowed, I ran against the strong breeze, hair flying in a stream of onyx behind me, leaving the sides of my ears unguarded. A curtain of hair wouldn't have obstructed noise to any extent, but would've helped nonetheless. I tried to close my ears, to block off any sound, but the soft weeping of the fox demon child was hard to ignore.

I sped up.

_I have never been so insulted, so deceived... _

I hit the tree line full force, choosing not to stay on the path, in case that baka decided to chase after me. This way, it would be harder for him to track my scent. _Yeah, I'll get a whole two seconds further ahead than I would have if I had run down the road._

My stupidity caught up with me as branches snagged in my hair abd leaves and ivy slithered down my shirt. Thanks to several low lying bushes and fallen twigs, my ankles along with pretty much every other body part below my knees were slashed to oblivion, but I didn't care. I wanted to get out of the feudal era as fast as possible. If I brought home the whole forest, so it shall be.

And apparently it _was_ meant to be, seeing as two seconds after I thought those words, I tripped over a fallen tree, executing a perfect face plant. I slammed face first into the hard earth, banging my head on a rock and receiving a mouthful of sticks, dirt, and who knows what else.

_So this is what it feels like to be sat. _

_Can't say that I'm a fan._

Head pounding, I scrambled to my feet as fast as I could, discovering a long, deep gash running down the length of my shin. My knee-high sock was soaked through with blood and my left temple was throbbing. Only after a low yell of frustration did I realize I was standing only feet away from the edge of the clearing that surrounded the Bone Eaters' Well.

I crunched my way to the soft grass of the meadow, beads of sweat forming above my brow. Slowly, but surely, I limped across the green field to the well, injured leg dragging behind me like some sort of grotesque extraneous appendage.

By the time I rested my palms against the coarse rim of the well, my breathing was heavy and my head swimming. I slunk down the side of the well so that I leaned against it, knees bent, and my head in my hands. The tears started to pour as soon as my eyes were shielded from reality by sweaty palms. A slideshow of Inuyasha played across the backs of my eyelids; Inuyasha screaming at me, practically frothing at the mouth. Inuyasha's fists, curled in irritation, then punching the unsteady wall. Inuyasha, pointing in the distance, motioning for me to go.

**You're useless, Kagome!**

My eyes flicked opened. "Uhh," I groaned, knocking my head against the side of well, "Why are you so STUPID, Inuyasha!" I screamed.

I picked a piece of grass and fiddled it between my thumb and forefinger, trying my best to ignore the incessant biting and stinging in my shin. I reached through my gnarled hair to grasp the clasp of the thin necklace that hung from my neck. I pinched the hook and unfastened the chain, letting it fall into my lap. I pulled the small jar containing the Shikon jewels shards off the string and rolled it between my fingers, watching as the pink fragments glinted in the little sun that peeped through the thick layer of clouds. The shards were so important, so vital… _I'm sure he didn't actually mean it, what he said._

**I don't see why you even bother showing up anymore!**

I was used to Inuyasha's insults and the fights that tagged along, but somehow… this time it was different. Something was a bit off and not in the weird 'I'm being controlled, this is code for save me' way either. It was more like, I gulped, he actually meant it. Usually, there was a faint undertone to his insults that meant 'I really don't want to say this, but I'm going to because it's expected.' This time however, there was no undertone, only pure…disgust. _I guess I'm really not wanted._

My breathing hitched, my trembles of physical pain ceased, and goose bumps erupted across my skin. A memory, a landmark in our friendship, came to mind. One that made my heart skip a beat.

**I will always stay here, return, as long as I am needed, as long as I am wanted. **(A/N Anyone remember what episode?)

Quietly I whispered the words to myself that I hoped I'd never hear aloud, that I promised I'd never have to say.

"I'm not needed."

_Or wanted._

I lifted my head to stare into the forest, thick with trees and darkness. The only noise that permeated the soft breeze was the faint rustling of leaves. No one was coming.

I stood up, which in the current situation, meant I raised my fist in the air and slightly elevated my good knee off the ground, flustered beyond belief, "Fine. I'll just go then!" I screamed to no one in particular, save a quickly retreating flock of birds.

**Might've? It WOULD'VE been better!**

A soft rain began to fall as I threw my good leg over one side of the well, leaving the other to dangle just above the grass. Blood dribbled down my ankle and seeped into the fine dirt that dusted the foot of the well. I glanced over my shoulder one last time and almost jumped into the well, but was stopped by an idea. I took the bottle of shards and switched it from my right to my left hand. I wrapped each finger around the curvature of the glass and hurled the flask as hard as I could in the opposite direction of the Goshinboku.

"Now I'll never have to worry about not being needed or… wanted again."

By now the rain was pouring and my clothes were soaked through. I shivered and shook, my skin crawling with cold. I heaved myself into the well before I could watch the jar hit the ground. As I flew towards the serene, blue light that engulfed the dark oblivion, I muttered my last words in the feudal era.

"Goodbye, Inuyasha."

####

"Do not worry, Inuyasha," the monk, assured. "I'm sure that Lady Kagome will return as soon as she calmed down."

"Man can she ever hold a grudge," I replied from my spot on the roof of Kaede's hut.

"You mustn't rush these things. I'm sure she will return within 5 days' time."

"Keh, like I care what she does," I replied indignantly. _A little longer than usual, but sounds about right._

_(2 or so weeks later)_

"Why don't you just go after her?"

_Because I don't want to get 'sat' so far into the ground, you'll have to peel me off the dirt with a shovel._ I folded my arms, shut my eyes, and raised my chin in a lofty manner. "I already told you, Miroku. I don't care what she does, when she comes back, or if she ever does at all!" I snapped.

I could practically hear the monk's eye-roll from my perch.

####

I pulled myself up the last rung of the ladder and lugged my broken body over the wooden lip of the well, scraping my stomach against the timber. _Great another scar to add to today's total_.

I fell with a thump to the stone floor of the well-house. The ground was freezing, but my battered body instantly felt better against the cool rock. It was like nature's very first hot-and-cold patch. I lay on the floor soaking in the sweet cool of the surface, watching the steam fly off my hot body.

"Mom!" I called. There was absolutely no way I was going to be able to drag myself back to the house without help.

"Momma!" I called, but again there was no response.

_Hmmm. That's funny. Maybe she went to the store or something. _

"Souta!" No answer.

"Gramps?" Silence.

"Momma?"

_Or maybe it's just Destroy-Kagome's-Self-esteem day._

"I guess I'm just gonna have to do this the old-fashioned way."

I rolled onto my back and reached for the rim of the well with my right hand. I stretched and stretched and finally got a grip on the rim. I pulled myself, one-handed, closer towards the well to reach up with the other hand. With both hands grasping the coarse lip, I pulled myself (using my newly developed archer's muscles if I do say so myself) to a stand on my uninjured leg. I let go of the well.

"Hey this doesn't hurt so bad." I began gingerly shifting my weight to my injured leg. "Yeah, this feels fine. I can so do this-whoa!" I shrieked, crashing to the floor.

_I can do this!_

I repeated the process of muscling my way to a stand, but this unfortunately included wiping out every time I tried to walk out of the shed. I was going to be sporting quite a few new bruises to compliment the huge gash on my leg.

"Gahhh!" I screamed, more in frustration than pain, tumbling to the floor for about the fiftieth time in the last ten minutes.

_I can't do this._

"Momma!" I called, "I need help!" Silence. "Anybody, please!" Nothing. "Souta, gramps, anybody!" Tears began to form in the corners of my eyes. _Why will no answer me?_

"Inuyasha!"

I clapped my hand over my mouth. Where did that come from? Why did I say that? _Inuyasha can't-won't-come to help me. If I'm calling out for that insolent, annoying, self-centered, hard-head, feeling-impaired, conceited jerk, I must be desperate!_ I pfffed aloud. _Besides, it's better this way. I can finally live a normal teenage life. Be happy!_ But no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't make myself smile. I couldn't be happy.

_What've I done?_

Shaking the thought from my head, I pulled myself to my knees. "I will do this. I will get into the house if it kills me!"

Suddenly, the door to the shed flew open and the silhouette of a large man stood in the doorway, framed in moonlight. I tried to stay as still as possible. The last thing I needed was a strange man coming anywhere near my personal space.

"Hello?" called the man, stepping into the light. "Is anyone in here?"

The voice belonged to a young man, maybe early twenties. He was dressed in casual attire, but the gun peeping out of his pants was more than obvious. He had light brown hair that flopped in front of his wide, disarming blue eyes. Along with the gun, he also carried a long silver flashlight, that after several seconds of concentration, I realized was pointed directly in my face.

I threw a hand in front of my eyes as I watched his gaze shift from my tired face to the pool of blood that lay under my broken body. He hurriedly bent down and with one hand grabbed my wrist, the other touching my forehead. "Miss, are you okay?" He asked.

"Ummm…"

"No of course you're not. Here let me help you up." I watched in total shock as he reached for my other hand and, in one easy swoop, pulled me to my feet. He took my arm and wrapped it around his shoulder so I wasn't leaning on my hurt leg. For a moment, we stood there awkwardly. I was still in utter disbelief that I was standing and not falling at the same time, but the poor guy helping me was practically shaking under my weight.

Turning to face me, he asked, "You wouldn't happen to be Kagome Higurashi would you?"

"Uhh, yeah, that's me. Why?" I replied, turning to face him as well.

His gaze immediately dropped. "Miss Higurashi, I'm really, really sorry, but I have horrible news."

I felt my heart drop and my muscles lock in place, "What?"

"Are you sure you're in good condition? Because if you're not stable I don't want to tell-"

"What is it?" I blurted.

He finally turned to look at me, with those odd, blue eyes. "I'm so sorry miss, but… a few hours ago you're mother, brother, and grandpa were involved in an automobile accident-"

My face fell as the blood drained from my head. Colors and objects in the shed swirled together in one giant mess. Reality and dream twisted together in one giant clutter.

"I'm so sorry miss-Kagome. Your mother and grandfather died on impact and your brother died a few minutes later on scene."

I felt my knees buckle and the nice officer grab the small of my back as the ground rapidly approached my blackening vision.

The whole world dropped away.

####

I stomped into Kaede's hut, nearly tearing off the drape that marked the entrance, yelling angrily, "Miroku!"

"Yes, Inuyasha?" answered Miroku, who had been calmly messing with his blue prayer beads. "And no need to yell," He said, setting down some plier looking thing and walking right up to my ear. _He wouldn't dare. _"We're all right here!" he screamed.

"Gahhh, Miroku!" My eyes crossed as an explosion of pain blasted in my head. I threw my hands over my ears, howling, "Would you quit that!"

He backed away. "Your wish is my command," he said, bowing. I rolled my eyes. "Anyway, what did you need?"

Ears ringing, starbursts dotting my eyes, I nonchalantly answered, "How many days has it been since she left?"

"Who is this 'she' you speak of?"

I blinked several times, trying to rid myself of confusion and the annoying balls of light flashing in my eyes. "I think you know who." I spat. _He's totally screwing with me!_

"I think you'll have to remind me," he sang, turning to reach for a certain unassuming demon exterminator's behind.

_So you wanna play this game, huh?_

In one quick move, I reached for my waist and ripped Tetsusaiga out of its sheath in a blaze of yellow light. I brandished the sword so that the tip just barely poked the monk's back and waited-three, two, one-

"Hentai!" SMACK!

Smirking, I watched Miroku spin from the force of the slap to come face to face with a gleaming, fully transformed Tetsusaiga. I raised a single eyebrow as he gulped once, then twice, although his demeanor remained outwardly calm. And let me tell you from personal experience, having the tip of a sword dig into your nose, let alone an all-powerful one, is scary any day and maintaining a peaceful exterior throughout is quite a feat.

"Miroku," I growled, "I know you know how long it's been. Answer me."

Silence.

I pushed the sword's tip in just a bit farther, but not enough to break skin or cause any pain. I wasn't gonna hurt the poor guy. That would be rude. I was just gonna scare him 'til he wet himself, is all.

"Answer me, hentai!" I snapped.

The monks eyes nervously darted to the left and then the right (looking for backup?), but no one would meet his eye, or mine for that matter. He just stared over my left shoulder and blatantly said, "It's been thirteen days. She would've come back to let us know if she was going to be gone for more than a weeks time by now."

"When does she ever do that?" I interrupted.

Sango spoke up, "All the time, baka. It just so happens that she always has to after you two have a shouting match!"

_Unbelievable._

"Inuyasha."

"WHAT!" I barked

"I believe the only reason," Sango started, "Kagome may not have returned to inform us of her absence would be if she truly was angry at you and is holding a grudge, which I don't believe she possesses the capability to hold onto for this long, or…she couldn't.

"Man, girls and their tempers-Wait. What do you mean if she…couldn't?

But I already knew the answer. I felt the smirk fall off my face and my eyebrows shoot to the roof. I was out of the hut and running for the well before I even realized what I was doing. Something wafted in the breeze, something bitter and coppery.

_The scent of human blood._

And the smell of fruit and…cleanliness.

Kagome's blood!

I shot down the dirt road that led to the woods, and to the well, where the epicenter of the scent blew. My feet were a blur. I could barely feel them hitting the hard ground as they raced across the terrain.

_Kagome is fine._

_Kagome is okay._

_The well is open._

_Kagome is probably just sitting on her fuzzy chair watching that glowing box, laughing at me because she thinks I'm going nuts waiting for her to return. Which I'm not._

Earth gave way to soft grass and in one long leap I was standing at the foot of the well. And in Kagome's blood. My heart skipped a beat and my muscles automatically tensed for battle, even though there was no demon in sight. A growl rippled from my throat, slicing through the soft wind that shook the trees and waved the grass.

It wasn't like Kagome had gotten a small cut and a drop of blood had fallen to the ground. There was a lot and it was everywhere. In the grass, soaked in the dirt at the foot of the well, even on the well itself leading a crimson trail all the way to the rim.

I was diving into the well, preying for the blue light, before I even had a chance to think it through.

####

I sniffed. My heart hurt, and the darkness that surrounded me was deep and unavoidable. It was swelling around my emaciated body, and I was easily succumbing to it. I had no will left to keep going. Not if I was alone.

Everyone I had ever loved, cared for, befriended was gone, vanished into thin air. I had shunned the people that had encircled me to the point that they hardly even remembered who I was, let alone who I was to them. The ones that stuck by had disappeared.

A dry sob broke through my parched lips. I tried to make myself cry, to feel the pain that I had inconsequently brought upon myself, but my eyes were dry. There was nothing left to cry with.

Even my tears had abandoned me.

####

Bursting out of Kagome's hut, I sniffed the air. No one was home or had been for a long time. Kagome and each of her family member's scents still floated about the house, but they were stale, at least a week old.

My head drooped forward and my ears fell in disappointment, as I stepped out of the house and into the shrine's main courtyard. _She didn't leave, did she? _Every part of me wanted to say no. Kagome was my friend, my first and best friend. She would've let me know if she'd left. _Right?_

And then there was the other, darker side of me that denied all of those thoughts were true. That just because she was kind and forgiving on the outside, didn't mean she wasn't constantly angry and annoyed with me for having her continually cross over into my time.

_But Kagome's not like that. She is what you get._

Confused, I growled into the misty night air. I trudged over towards the ancient Goshinboku, that was somehow miraculously still alive and growing, in Kagome's time. I hopped over the small, white fence that bordered the tree. I dropped my gaze to the muddy ground, watching as my feet slowly sunk lower and lower into the mud. I reached one hand towards the bark, knowing what my fingers would encounter. I traced a long scratch down the length of the scar that marred the near perfectness of the Goshinboku. It was slightly smaller than the matching wound that adorned the tree in my time, but only because fresh bark had started to creep along the edges of the mark here.

I lifted my head to stare at the wide trunk. It was huge, much bigger here than in my time. _Funny how the tree keeps on growing, while the scar remains nearly the same size for over 500 years._ My claws dip in and out of the tree as they bump over the hole that Kikyo's arrow left. _Maybe it has something to do with the magic of Kikyo's arrow. Or maybe it's because I, instead of a normal human, was sealed to the tree. Miroku's right. I do need to use my brain more often. _I sighed aloud, frustrated over the stupid tree that had absolutely nothing to do with finding Kagome.

And then it clicked.

"I smell her!"

####

I dropped to the ground as the rain poured over my freezing body. I shivered violently against the hard, cold, unforgiving ground. _This is what it's like to be alone._

Another unintelligible noise broke through my shattered lips.

Pain erupted behind my ears, but not physical. Emotional pain. I was done. Done with the world. Done feeling. Done with people. Done trying to care. Done with myself.

But there was absolutely nothing I could do about it.

####

I stood before the entrance of an enormous metal gate and took a deep breath.

_Yup, she's definitely here, but something's off. _I had pinpointed the center of Kagome's scent back at the Goshinboku towards the foot of the great tree, like she had rolled around in the dirt on purpose. But then, her scent had smelled normal, like it always had. Upon arriving at the massive gate, it smelled different somehow. Like it was fresher and had a bite to it.

_Like Kikyo._

Panic flooded my stomach as my limbs turned to jelly. All thoughts dissolved, all reason turned to dust. I was frozen in place, shock overwhelming any rationale I had, not that there was much to begin with.

_Like death and graveyard soil._

My mind was on lock down, no thought or feeling entering or exiting. All that ran through my mind was disbelief. By then I had realized I was at the entrance to a graveyard. That much I got. _But why would I be here unless…_

It couldn't be true. It did not compute. It just wasn't possible.

_Kagome…dead?_

_####_

My whole self was cloaked in aching, my heart in agony. I was wholly and completely out of touch with reality. My capability to discern what was real and what was imagined had melted as horrifying visions flashed through my head. Or did they? Maybe they were real. It made no difference to me. They were equally horrible no matter if they were truth or dream. Having to decide if they were fact or fiction was almost as bad as having to watch them slideshow across my eyes.

And there was no one by my side to help me through it.

####

A scream ripped through the still air, splitting the night in two. My ears turned to powder, developed sense of hearing for once being a hindrance. Agony was laced through the cry, tones of misery and despair intertwined. Most prominent of all, though, was the pain. The shriek was so dreadful, so sickening it was enough to make my stomach toss and turn.

It was also enough to liquefy my bones and suddenly I was snaking through the maze of gravestones. Before I could realize why, I was yelling Kagome's name as loud as I could off pure instinct. And then I got the connection. The one screaming was Kagome and I had gone after her before I'd even noticed I was running.

"Kagome!" I shouted, following the sound of her voice.

Her scent was dampened, thanks to the midnight mist that blanketed the field, but at least it was there at all. Kagome screaming was perturbing, but then again, when was she not yelling? In fact when _didn't_ she yell? "Ahhh, Inuyasha, I'm being kidnapped again! Ahhh, Inuyasha, my books are floating down the river! Get them! Ahhh, Inuyasha, Osuwari!" She was probably just freaking out over another bug or snake or something.

As much as I hoped it was true, I knew in the lump in my chest, that according to Sango didn't exist, something was not right.

At first all I saw was a dark lump hunched on the ground. I immediately stopped running. _She's okay. She's okay._ I felt my face relax from a scowl I hadn't realized I'd been holding, but then I noticed the smell of salt mingling with her scent.

"Hey, Kagome!" I called, "You ain't crying again, are you?"

Slowly she raised her head to face me, confusion and tears dotting her small, _sad_ face. This surprised me. Kagome is… well, Kagome. Happy, annoyingly optimistic, didn't cry over broken bones Kagome. _What's going on?_

She moaned in a thick voice, "Now I'm seeing things." Sobs burst from her chest.

I rolled my eyes, not able to stop myself. "Kami, do you EVER quit?"

She only cried harder. _Way to go, Inuyasha _I thought to myself, messing with the hem of my robe of the fire rat.

She sat up and pulled her knees to her chest, resting her head on them. "You aren't here," she muttered brokenly, like she had a dry throat, "You aren't real. It's impossible!"

My brow furrowed in confusion. Last time I checked, I wasn't some demented little kid's imaginary friend. "Kagome," I said, voice softening, "Look at me."

She gave no indication that she heard me at all. Somehow this made me angrier than it had when she had told me she hated me all that time ago. She continued to rest her head on her knees, eyes facing down, not acknowledging me, the graveyard, or the cold wind that gusted through it. Goosebumps dotted her skin, but she did not shiver. Her hair was a ratty mess, but she made no move to smooth it. Her odd skimpy clothes from the future were different than usual, darker and rumpled, and a tear ran along the side. She made no move to cover herself.

"You're not real. You're not real. YOU ARE NOT REAL!" She screamed.

"Kagome." Again no reaction. _Am I talking to myself here?_

"Kagome," I said, more forcefully this time.

"I am not insane," she muttered to herself.

I walked over to where she sat huddled and bent down in front of her face so she had no choice but to look at me. I'd never seen her so miserable, so distraught. Whoever did this to her would pay. "Kagome," I said, on the verge of, what was it called? Tenderness? On the verge of tenderness, and grabbed her hands. "Look at me, Kagome. I'm right here."

Slowly she lifted her head, eyes puffy and red, and looked me straight in the eye.

"You're not going insane. I am real," I grabbed her hand, "and I am right here. Look at me, Kagome."

I watched in amazement as her mouth opened with a soft pop and her eyes widened to the size of sand dollars. And the next thing I knew, her hand was flying towards my face. Of course I caught her arm before she got anywhere near to slapping me, but the thought was still there.

"You stupid baka!" she screamed, arm twitching. Was she trying to free herself from my grasp? I brought her arm down so that it was at her side, but didn't let go. "Why can't you just leave me alone like you're supposed to?" She shrieked, sadness shifting to pure hatred.

_Ouch. _"Kagome," I said, confused, "What's wrong? Why are you crying?"

She sniffed as something flashed in her eyes. _Oh man, am I in trouble_. I tried to back away, but it was too late. Hurricane Kagome was about to break and I was directly in its path. "Why am I crying? Why am I upset? Why am I screaming at you? Well I don't Inuyasha, why don't you ask yourself?" Her voice broke. "If you had any decency, any sense of goodness, or compromise in you at all, I wouldn't even be in this situation right now!" Her lip quivered. "This is all your fault!" She screamed. She blinked once, lip quivering, and then suddenly broke down in hysterics.

_Alright, she's lost it._ "Kagome," I grabbed her shoulders and gently shook her. "Calm down. It's okay." I added, "You're okay. I'm okay. We're both okay."

"Get OFF of me! Get away!" She screeched, closing her eyes, and more or less throwing a temper tantrum.

"If you tell me what's wrong, maybe I would!" I shot back

"I said get OFF!" she shouted, scratching at my hands holding her in place. I didn't move, didn't give her any slack. Somehow, in her frenzy, I could just picture her hurting herself and I wasn't about to let that happen. So I continued to scan her tear-stained face, her sad, dry eyes. Kagome looked so… defeated, so miserable and absolutely devastated. _There's no way this is my fault, is it? _

Unthinking, I folded her into my arms and hugged her freezing, trembling figure. She was so cold and at first seemed to thaw against my body, but then must've realized where she was. She began to struggle, kicking and screaming against my chest, begging me to let her go. She beat her head against my torso and violently jerked back and forth, but no matter how hard she tried, she was never going to be any match against my strength.

As quickly as it had started, her punches and poundings faded and she soon lay still, leaning into my chest, crying silently. Her small hands grabbed and clutched at my haori until she finally had a firm grasp on it. She was actually pulling herself closer, which was a big improvement over trying to be the crap out of me. I rested my chin upon her silky head and tried to hold as still as possible.

She pulled back, "Inuyasha," she whispered, I nearly jumping in surprise (nearly being the key word here), "They're gone."

"Who is?" I asked quietly, choosing my words carefully so as not to set her off.

"Momma, Gramps, Souta," her voice cracked, "They all…"

_Oh crap was I wrong. _I quickly put my hand on her head and brought it to rest on my chest again. "Shhh, Kagome, it's okay."

"But I'm-I'm-there's no one else left."

"Kagome, I won't leave you. I'm here," I said closing my eyes as I held her.

"I'm alone," she whispered into my chest.

I felt the hot dampness of her tears dampen my haori. I didn't say another word. I just let her cry. Later, I would think_ If anyone ever finds out about this, I will never here the end of it_, but at the moment, I didn't care. I just pulled her tighter and hugged her closer over her brother's grave.

**Awww, that was cute. If you guys like it review. If no one really likes it, I can just leave it as is. I made it so long that in case no one really liked it, it could be left as a one-shot; however, I do have an entire storyline planned out with much more action.**

**Let me know! Review!**


	2. Chapter 2

**I'm back! I wasn't expecting so much positive feedback for chapter 1 so thanks to all those who reviewed or favorited! You made being sick the day after Christmas suck a little less! Love ya! Anywho, here's the next chapter. Not so much action, but a lot of... whatsit called...I'm drawing a blank here. When you give a hint to what's-got it! Fore shadowing. There is lots of foreshadowing in this chapter.**

**R&R**

I woke to the sound of pounding rain and blasting thunder. My ears rang and my jaw was painfully clenched as I unscrewed the scowl etched into my face. Another knock of thunder shook the room, the bed and I included. Tentatively, I opened my eyes to stare at the shadowy ceiling, splashed with the shadows of waving branches and leaves. Lightning lit the room and I jackknifed up, sweating and breathing heavily.

Slowly, I curled into a ball. I wrapped my arms around my pajama clad legs and rested my head on my knees, facing the wall. I sat there, trembling, for who knows how long. I had dreamed something-a nightmare-that much was obvious. But no matter how hard I tried, no matter how far I searched my mind, I couldn't remember anything. Just darkness. I sighed.

"Kagome?" Jumping, I nearly peed myself at the sound of Inuyasha's voice. My neck snapped to the right and there he was, leaning against the wall under my window as if he'd been there the entire night.

"Inuyasha?" I asked, voice cracking with sleep.

"Don't worry, Kagome. I'm not leaving," he said, crawling over to the bedside. "Go back to sleep."

_Who died and made you king of the dog pile? Ha! See what I did there... _I gawked, mouth wide like a charging hippo, trying to figure out what was going on, how he got here, and why in the heck he was telling me what to do.

Protest on the tip of my tongue, he commanded again, "Just do it."

I was too exhausted to argue and lying on the bed, easily complied. Drawing the covers to my chin, the silent question bugged me. _What's going on? _I couldn't for the life of me figure out why Inuyasha was sitting on my floor in the middle of the night during an incredibly loud storm that had to be killing his ears, telling me everything was okay and that I should go back to sleep. Inuyasha + concerned, caring, and comforting = ?

"Go to sleep, wench!"

Rephrase. Inuyasha + annoying, bossy, and usual jerk-ish self = $$$

####

Kagome groaned.

I snapped my eyes open to glance in her direction. Her hair was splayed across her pillow and her face scrunched in frustration, her eyebrows deeply knit. Her hands curled into lethal fists and her muscles tensed, her legs kicking in random directions. The blanket hardly covered her small body, but twisted through her arms and legs. Sweat formed at her brow as her body thrashed.

_She's having a nightmare. Again. For about the fiftieth time. In the past half hour._

Sighing, I unwound my arm from Tetsusaiga, leaned it against the wall, and slid across the floor to her bedside.

"What are you dreaming? Or nightmare-ing," I muttered to her sleeping form.

Her leg shot out from her body and kicked me in the shoulder. Hard.

"Nothing good, I take it," I whispered to her sleeping form. She violently flinched and then dissolved into hard tremors that shook her whole body and slightly rocked her bed back and forth.

I sighed and raised my hand to grab hold of her shaking wrist. She immediately calmed at my touch. As she stopped wriggling, I took my hand from her arm and placed it on her pale hand. Soon, she lay still and softly snoring, her eyes flicking beneath their lids. Keeping my hand on hers, I gently unraveled the blankets between Kagome's limbs, being mindful of the cut on her shin. I lifted the sheets and covered her tiny form and vaguely smiled as she sighed, then scowled, in her sleep.

_You'd think she was dreaming about Naraku coming on to her or something. Now _THAT_ would be worth the nightmare._

I moved my free hand to her sweaty forehead and, like before, she instantly relaxed, her frown waning. She wasn't feverish anymore, but her cheeks were still flushed and her skin still felt warm to the touch. _Being out in that rain has done _wonders _for her health, _I thought, frowning.

I brushed a stray chunk of hair off her face using a single claw as she, unconsciously, grabbed my hand.

####

I woke for the second time to the burn of hot sunlight on my face, the steady drip-drip of rain pattering the windowsill. A cool breeze wafted through the open window and into my room, causing a slight rustle as it blew over long forgotten homework assignments and textbooks. My wet hair drifted across my face, tickling my nose. I sneezed. Wait, wet hair? I reached a hand up to my stringy locks and they were indeed soaked through. _Eww, sweat! __Need a shower. Now._

With one leg, I kicked the heavy comforter off myself and let the cool breeze sweep across my sweaty body. I did not shiver or crawl back under the covers. It felt good. All of it. The breeze, the cold, the smell of the air after the rain-wait. Still sprawled on my bed, I opened my eyes to find the room deserted. The curtains billowed in the post-rain wind where Inuyasha had sat the night before. Or had he?

I slid off the bed to look out the window and into the courtyard of the main shrine grounds. It, like my room, was deserted. A thin dusting of leaves danced across the concrete, the Goshinboku bending in the wind. Puddles dotted the square and the air smelled fresh, gray clouds tumbling over each other in the sky. But there was no flash of red bouncing about the yard, no angry hanyou screaming "Hurry it up, wouldja?"

_Must've been a dream._

Turning, I crossed the room, stuffed my feet into my slippers, and trekked down the hallway to Souta's room. I knocked, but after a minute of no answer, did what any perfect, lovable, model older sister would do. I barged right in.

"Souta?" I called. "Is there any particular reason you're ignoring me on this wonderful morning?"

But there was no one there.

Intense vertigo and extreme dizziness suddenly clouded my head. My vision tunneling, the room spun as I tried to brace myself against the door frame. Completely failing, I slid to the floor, landing against the plush carpet with a soft thump. I sat, limbs contorted, on the carpet for several minutes, staring around the empty room before my eyes began to drift shut. Just as my lashes touched, I noticed something on my calf. A red line. I forced my eyes open and a hand to my shin. I traced my fingers along the stripe, feeling the ridges and softness, the thin rise and fall of tissue. A scar.

And everything came racing back.

The fight.

The run.

The well.

The shards.

The officer.

The remains.

The funeral.

The pain.

The graveyard.

The rain.

All of it.

"I'm losing my mind," I whispered.

Numbly, I stood and wobbled over to my late brother's flawlessly made bed. I sat down, grabbed his pillow, and held it to my chest. My feet dangled over the edge, not quite reaching the floor, I kicking them back and forth. I didn't cry and not just because my tears were dried-don't get me wrong they totally were-but because I knew that my family wouldn't want me to be upset. They recognized me as the strong, courageous girl I was never meant to be, the girl who had grown in every way possible. The 'warrior' of the family according to Souta.

I had no place to cry.

"Hey, Kagome," Inuyasha said, walking into the room. "What took you so long? Couldn't figure out how to walk after sleep for so damn long?" Inuyasha had shed his robe of the fire rat and was holding a single cup of ramen in his hand. He continued to ferociously shove noodles into his mouth as he waited for an answer. However, I was unable to stay angry or to keep myself from laughing at the ramen hanging from his ear long enough to respond. How he managed to get the noodle all the way up there around his ear-or get the ramen in fact, I was sure we were out-I have no clue, but it was the most hilarious thing I'd seen in days.

"Something funny?" he asked in complete seriousness. I only laughed harder.

"Would you quit that?" I couldn't contain myself any longer. My stomach was cramping and my cheeks hurt so bad, it felt like they were slowly being pulled off my face in opposite directions. I rolled off the bed and onto the floor. No longer was I laughing at the stupid piece of noodle, but at the sheer irony that was my life. My whole family was dead. I had no surviving relatives. I could time travel. I was sitting not ten feet away from someone that wasn't completely human. Not everyone can say that every last one of those things has happened to them at some point.

"Inuyasha," I gasped, "Come here."

He cautiously, scowling, walked towards me.

"Hey, I didn't come here to be laughed at!" he yelled. "Believe it or not, I'm no circus freak."

He recoiled as I reached from my perch on the bed to pull the noodle off his ear. What did he think I was going to do? Slap him? And then I realized, with shame, I had already tried. _Oops._ I snatched the ramen off his ear and wiggled it between his eyes. His frustrated expression quickly shifted to one of peace and he even cracked a tiny smile. However I can't say the same for myself.

I jackknifed to a stand and stormed out of the room, leaving Inuyasha in the dust. I stomped down the steps and into the TV room to find him already waiting in front of the television, arms crossed.

"What's your deal Ka-go-me?"

Completely ignoring him, I spun to clomp into the kitchen and grab a bagel. As I was spreading the cream cheese, I heard the slap of Inuyasha's bare feet against our linoleum floor. I took a bite out of my bagel and turned to face him, knife still in hand.

"Seriously, Kagome. What's your problem?" he asked, this time less annoyed.

"Why are you here at all?" I muttered, finishing his earlier statement.

"What was that?" he asked, leaning forward, eyebrow raised.

Ignoring him was, clearly, not going to work. It was just too darn hard with someone that was this irritatingly persistent. "How could you?" I asked, setting my bagel down and pressing my hands against the counter.

"Huh?"

"How could you?" I screamed, venom dripping from each word, waving the knife in the air.

He took a step back, palms raised in a "please don't kill (i.e. sit) me" fashion. "Kagome, I think it's time to put the knife down-"

"Inuyasha, after all I did for you," I said advancing, and pointing towards him, "how could you say that? I went to Byakuya by _myself_ and that was the thanks I got?"

"I always say that," he replied, stepping back.

"And I always keep promises, unlike some people! But I guess, you wouldn't be able to comprehend that considering your lack a brain and heart!"

"Get off my back! I did what was best for all of us!" he yelled.

"Get lost, jerk," I snapped, tossing the knife into the sink.

"Not to mention," he interrupted, "it was your fault in the first place!" he shot back, throwing his hands down.

"Don't you think I know that?"

His hand was raised, pointed in my direction and words were on the tip of his tongue, the shape of his mouth, but no sound was coming out. Slowly, his finger dropped and his 'O' shaped mouth fell into a straight line. His eyes relaxed and the fury that had draped his features vanished and the tips of his fangs that had barely poked from beneath his upper lip retracted.

"Kagome this. Kagome that. Kagome you're the reason we're in this mess. Kagome shattered the jewel. Kagome, stop getting kidnapped. Kagome why do you always lose the shards? It's all your fault Kagome!" I exploded, a mocking tone gracing my words.

Lowering my voice and gaze, I continued. "I think I got it by now."

Spinning on my heel, I marched out of the kitchen, out of the house, and into the main courtyard, heading for the well. Inuyasha quickly caught up.

"Do you enjoy storming out on people? Does it make you happy? Because you seem to be doing a lot of it lately."

"Only when I'm left with no other choice," I responded, not bothering to face him.

"Since when do you give up?" he asked.

"What?" I asked, infuriated. _You're really pushing you're luck today pal._

"Well, if you say you had no choice, that means you weren't looking for any other possibilities."

"Are you referring to now or before?"

"I don't care."

I stopped walking and we both stood in silence for several minutes before I asked, "Why do you think I went in the first place?"

When he didn't respond, I huffed and took off jogging towards the well, Inuyasha in pursuit. I thrust the doors open. It was the first time I'd been inside the shed since I'd heard the news and dried blood covered nearly every square inch of surface from the side of the well to the doorway.

Looking at Inuyasha, I saw the shock and disbelief that coated his face. _There's no way he didn't notice. He had to find me somehow. My blood would've been the perfect lead._

"Kagome I didn't…when did…how?" he sputtered.

I guess I didn't give Inuyasha enough credit. He can focus on something for longer than two seconds.

"C'mon Inuyasha," I said, grabbing his hand. "Just forget about it."

I crossed over to the well, Inuyasha in tow, to gaze into its thick darkness. I took one last look over my shoulder to stare into the world that I'd grown up in. The world where there was technology, food that wasn't infested with worms and maggots, and most importantly indoor plumbing.

I jumped into the well, without a single glance back.

**Much to Kagome's convictions, she hasn't lost her mind (yet). That's next chapter. And since this is an actual story now, I will try to update once a week, but no guarantees. Reviews help. Soooo, Review! (I won't update if I don't get any reviews btw)**

**Also last chapter I got a few questions about the bolded lines. Those were Kagome remembering what Inuyasha had said when they fought earlier.**

**Line From Chapter 3: "What would you do to have your family back?"**


	3. Chapter 3

**So, I know the last chapter wasn't terribly amazing or action packed, but 1 review. Really? Oh well! Shout out to Kate () – or is it () Kate?- for that review! I can guarantee that this chapter is better than the last though. However, I had to split it in two because it was so HUGE! So I guess this is like part 1. Enjoy!**

**R&R**

"_Higurashi?"_

_Chin in palm, gaze at the floor, I slowly raise my hand, not bothering to glance up. A few moments of silence pass and someone gently touches my shoulder. I shrink back in the green, plastic chair, trying to wriggle free of the grasp, but it's futile. My throat quickly closes as my heart hammers away in my chest._

_I hardly feel the arm wrapping around my shoulders as my head pounds. The arm pulls me to a stand on weak knees, my entire body dissolving in trembles. Carefully guiding my disoriented self across the deserted lobby, the arm pulls me along. The arm tightly clutches my shoulders and upper back, so much so, that my limp was hardly noticeable. I had no will left to move of my own accord. Even if I had been perfectly honest to goodness fine, I couldn't have crossed that room if I tried._

_Hours, minutes, seconds passed; which of the three, I have no clue, but no matter the time, it was just too fast. As soon as I had stood, I was already staring at my reflection in the wide, metal door; the arm was already reaching a massive hand toward the knob. _

_Instinctively, I dig my heels into the ground. Just as I couldn't walk on my own, I was powerless to enter that room._

_ The arm transformed into a man who, as soon as I froze, did as well. A small squeeze and a reassuring nudge later, pressure on my back registered as a push and I was being forced ahead. But I stood my ground. I indignantly curled my fists, bowing my head, determined. _

_The man turned my body so that I was staring into his pristine, white lab coat. I could tell by the way his shirt stretched across his chest that he was well built. Curious, I slowly tip my head back to see just who's guiding me into uncertainty. I freeze, stifling a gasp. Scars ravage his face, running across his cheeks and nose from ear tip to ear tip. His short, dark hair waves in a mysteriously absent breeze and his skin is smooth and tan. Most disturbing, though, are his eyes. Overwhelming and nearly touching his lashes, the pupils are undistinguishable in his black irises. _

_He was the most beautiful person I'd ever seen._

"_I can't do it," I whisper, "Get someone else."_

_ For several seconds he says nothing, but flashes a quick, sad grin. As untimely and awkward as his smile may have been, it only enhanced his beauty. Either that or he was just a pervy creep smiling at a defenseless teenage girl._

_ Only the two of us stand in the small, whitewashed room and the atmosphere is becoming more and more uncomfortable with each passing second. Just as I'm contemplating bolting, he finally speaks. "There is nothing I can do to reverse the past. If they are dead, then they are dead. If they are not, then they are not."_

_ Swerving around me, he thrusts the door open with a loud bang. My jaw drops and a stupefied look crosses my face. Who is this creep_!_ "Hey!" I yell, infuriated. "Are you saying they might not be in there?" I ask, gesturing towards the door._

_ "I imply no such thing. I am simply stating what is obvious," he says, back turned._

_ "Well, make up your mind!" I shout, spreading my arms. He slowly turns, a bone chilling glare crumpling his face. "Do I have a reason to be here or can I go?" _

_ "There is a purpose for everything."_

_ It may have been the sleep deprived, headache induced, grieving haze that fogged any rational thought I had left or maybe it was just me being my typical, high-strung self, but whatever the cause, I nodded my head in acceptance._

_ Keeping eye contact, he snatches a wooden block off a hidden table, drops it, kicks it, and wedges it under the door so that it stands ajar. I step forward, but can go no further. Leaning against the frame, I watch as the man methodically prepares himself. Wash hands. Pull on latex gloves. Grab chart. Scan chart. Think. Grab a pen. Write something down. Think some more. Walk over to a wall of metal drawers. Pick one out. Stand by it. Wait. _

_I know he's waiting on me. His hard glare and annoyed demeanor are enough to tip me off. _Time to be strong and get your butt over there, girl!

_Taking a deep breath, I push off the doorframe and cross the room. It takes three steps. Three short steps between escape or a complete shift in life. Three unnerving steps that could play a major role in my sanity. Three steps I wasn't entirely sure I was capable of walking. Three steps I had to take. Three steps._

_I stand directly across from the man who gives me one last pat on the shoulder before wrapping his long, slender fingers around the drawer's handle. I wrap my arms around my stomach, nausea rising in the back of my throat, tears forming at the corners of my eyes. Shoving down both, I shut my lids._

Is my family's life worth three steps?

_The telltale sliding of metal on metal screeches through the small room and goose bumps pebble my skin._

It's not them. I have to believe it's not them. Otherwise, what do I have to believe in?

_Counting backwards from five, I retreat into the deep recesses of my mind, focusing on the happy, positive moments that could very soon be overshadowed._

_My third birthday with the iced star._

_Souta coming home from the hospital for the first time._

_Gramp's joy at finding some new concoction in the shrine house._

_Momma at my fifth grade pageant._

_All of us together. Happy._

_But I knew in that lump in my throat and that tightening in my heart there was no other conceivable option than what had to be._

…One

_I snap my eyes open to see the mangled body that was my mother._

I jerk upright, breathing heavy, with a hand placed on my quickly rising and falling stomach. Heart racing, I try to calm myself in the glow of the fire inside the small, wooden hut. Breathe in. Breathe out. Repeat. I cradle my head in shaky hands, blinking rapidly, trying to exorcise the gory images slide-showing across the backs of my eyelids. _Blood. So much of it._

I'd seen plenty of dead bodies during our travels, it was kind of a given being in the feudal era, but somehow it was different when the corpse was someone you knew.

Hands trembling, hair swishes in front of my face, shielding my eyes from the world. I barely register the hair is mine before flinching when it tickles my knees. I bring my hands to my head and I vaguely feel my head violently shaking back and forth, hair whipping across my hands. _No._

I peek through my fingers and glance around the room. The dying fire casts eerie shadows across the wooden walls. They dance and twirl to an unknown hymn, adding to the spooky atmosphere.

The back of my neck prickles-like when someone's creeping on you- and I spin to find no one there.

_I swear there was someone watching me just now._

"Kagome."

My eyes widen to the size of golf balls.

"Come play with me Kagome."

I gasp. "Souta?" _Impossible._

I clap my hands over my ears. "I'm going insane."

A rustle of cloth and soft footsteps. "Oh, Kagome. Ye are awake. What is it ye were saying?"

Jumping, I frantically cover my shaking legs (not hiding anything), fix my hair (massive fail), and wipe the sweat off my forehead (can't really mess that one up). "Oh, ummm, hi, Kaede," I sputter, "Yeah, uhh, here I am."

Completely oblivious, Kaede continues. "I take it ye rested well?"

"Great!" (Lie).

"Good," she said, smiling. "Now that ye have finally awoken, I need to change ye bandages again."

Glancing at the pristine white compress, I notice several fresh crimson dots of blood. _Great. Now my perfectly healed wound reopened and I'm losing it._ I nod.

As Kaede bustles about the room gathering herbs and cloth to bind my leg, I can't help but let my mind wander back to my dream. That cold, lifeless room gave me the chills just thinking about it. Even the man in the lab coat had seemed strange and it wasn't like that was the first time I'd seen him either. He used to come to the shrine when I was little, maybe four or five years old. The only reason I remembered him so well was because he'd tried to steal a jar out of the well-house and break into my kitchen. It was just too weird.

Kaede, carrying a multitude of supplies, sat down at the end of my mat, dropping all of her materials by my feet. "Ye are feeling better, aye child?"

"Oh, uhh, yeah, much better." _Didn't she just ask that?_

She drew the blanket off my legs and began to gently unwrap the bandages on my shin. "Kagome ye are shaking like a newborn babe."

"Yeah, I guess I'm just a little cold." It was 70 degrees.

"Kagome," she said with a hint of a warning tone.

"Okay, fine," I said, drooping. She went back to her work. "I had a dream."

"I take it ye dream was not pleasurable?"

"That's the understatement of the century," I muttered.

"Kagome, look at me." I look. "What agitates ye?"

"I'd rather not talk about it."

"And that tis all well and fine, Kagome, but erecting a brave front isn't helping ye or the ones who care for ye. Pretending to be okay when all ye feel is pain will only prolong ye suffering. Believe me when I say tis fine to be upset, but that ye eventually will be okay. I do not know why ye only family had to die. Tis wrong for a young lass to be alone in the world. But remember, ye aren't. Ye have Shippo and Sango and Monk Miroku and Inuyasha to help ye through ye pain and to comfort ye when ye are hurting. Hear me when I say that ye will be fine," she looked down at her materials. "Sister Kikyo was my only kin and she had to pass on twice. Ye will be fine," she finished, smiling.

"Thanks, Kaede."

_Sango lost her family; Miroku lost his father; Shippo lost his mother AND his father. Why is it that every single one of them can use that remorse, that loss, to bounce back and keep moving forward-to seek revenge-while I am rendered useless and left on the floor to slowly watch as the life seeps out of me? Why can even a little kitsune like Shippo move and walk and function like a normal youkai even though he's an orphan? How can Miroku carry the heartache-not to mention the curse!-of knowing that everything depends on him BECAUSE of his father's death? _

_ I don't understand! _

"Kagome," said Kaede, perusing the wound, "I think ye will no longer have to wear dressings after tomorrow. Ye wound looks to be almost completely healed."

"Thanks, Kaede," I said, smiling.

"Are those the only two words ye know?"

"Seems so," I said and we both laughed, I genuinely for the first time in a long time.

"Am I interrupting something?"

We simultaneously quiet and swing our heads toward the entrance where Inuyasha stood holding the cloth door in his outstretched hand.

"Inuyasha, ye ignorant beast! When will ye stop ripping me door off its frame?" Kaede said loudly. (I was under the impression that yelling might kill the old priestess).

"As soon as I see Sesshoumaru give Naraku a lap dance," he muttered.

"I beg ye pardon?"

She looked at me questioningly, raising an eyebrow. Barely suppressing my laughter, I simply shrugged my shoulders. _Where did he even learn that? I've got to keep a closer eye on him when we're in my time. _

"Hey, Kagome. You done sleeping yet?"

"I'm not even going to bother responding to that," I said, stomach still shaking from suppressed laughter.

He muttered something about annoying women not being able to take a joke and came to crouch by my side. He leaned forward, watching carefully as Kaede dressed my wound. She finished with a pat on my leg and gathered her herbal remains, taking the extras to dump outside. That left Inuyasha and I alone.

"How ya feeling?" he asked, still gazing at the now clean white bandages.

"Better. Kaede says I won't have to where the bandages after tomorrow."

"Good. Then we can finally get moving."

"Already? Can't we stay a little longer?"

"Do you want Naraku to win?" he shot back.

"No I was just kind of hoping that…never mind," I trailed.

"It's been a week," he pointed out.

"I know."

"That's long enough."

"Not really."

"How?"

"Just because you can walk around without a care in the world doesn't mean I can!" I yelled.

"What's that supposed to mean?" he asked, anger rising.

"It means…" I started, but words failed. My face fell and my bangs flopped in front of my eyes as I whispered, "It means I don't know what to do."

Several moments of awkward silence ensued. We didn't speak. We didn't look at each other. I'm not entirely sure we were breathing.

"Kagome, I'm sorry."

I gasped. Did I imagine that? Blinking, I asked, "For what?"

"It's my fault your hurt."

_He can't mean…_ "Wait, what?"

"Don't try to deny it. You wouldn't have been running through that forest if it hadn't been for me."

_Of course he doesn't_. "But I-"

"Just stop, okay!" he interrupted.

I played with a loose thread on my skirt, bangs still covering my face. "I'm just tired."

"It's okay. We'll stay for a few more days."

"Thanks."

He stood from my side and began to leave, but I stopped him before he got the chance. "Inuyasha," I started, "Do you still plan on becoming a full-fledged demon after we gather all the shards?" I asked.

"'Course," he said, not bothering to turn around. "What else would I use it for?"

"I don't know," I said looking down in my lap. "I think I'm gonna take a walk for a while."

"Like I care what you do," he called.

I hoisted myself on weak legs and stumbled out of the hut.

####

"Inuyasha, ye are the biggest baka I have ever laid me eyes on."

"What?" I yelled, digging my claws into the wood floor, "What did I do?"

"Are ye blind?" the priestess asked, furiously scrubbing at a wooden bowl. "Why do ye think Lady Kagome asked ye about the Shikon no tama?"

"She ALWAYS asks about it," I said, exasperated and rolling my eyes. "She wants me to stay a 'happy' hanyou forever, which, by the way, is not going to happen."

"Think about it, ye ignorant puppy," she replied, taking her cloth and waddling out of the hut.

I stared in her wake, dumbfounded and jaw agape. "What the hell was that about?" I muttered.

_Kagome's always rambling on and on about how I should stay just the way I am. Hanyou. But then the only reason she's here is to help ME find the shards so I can turn into a youkai. Is she reconsidering helping me? Who am I kidding? I'm reconsidering using the jewel for myself._

"Inuyasha ye look as if ye are trying very hard not to soil yourself," Kaede said, re-entering.

"I'm thinking!"

"Of course ye are."

"I'm detecting a bit of sarcasm."

"Tis true."

"Uhh," I growled.

_She doesn't approve of me using the jewel to becoming a youkai; so if she doesn't support me anymore then obviously…_ My chest involuntarily constricted at the thought.

"I've got it!"

"Yes, Inuyasha," Kaede said dryly.

"She's doesn't want to find jewel shards anymore!" I said, raising my hands in the air, twisted smile on my face.

Kaede stood silent, wrinkled face becoming even more crinkled in thought. Suddenly, she hobbled to a mound of junk in the corner of the room and dug around a bit before emerging with a rolled up piece of bamboo. She crossed the room, opened her mouth to speak, closed it, and whacked me on the head, smashing my ear in half.

"Oi, hey! What the hell was that for?" I yelled, rubbing my ear.

"Ye are stupider than I thought. Tis not obvious that Lady Kagome wishes to use the jewel herself?"

"So she's not leaving-er, wait, uhh-what for?" I asked, tension oozing from my chest.

"If ye can't figure that much, ye are not deserving of the poor child." And she marched out of the hut a second time.

"Oh well that's mature! Storm out on the confused idiot!" I called after her. Perfect, now even I'm calling myself an baka. "What now?"

_Kagome's always talking about how she has everything she could possible need in the world. How she had a nice, normal life before she got sucked into all this crap. How she had plenty of friends to go around and to spend time with. How she had her family to complete her skippy-dippy little existence. How she didn't need an extra wish. _

_Except she just lost everything. All of it-gone._

The face of a woman with long black and kind eyes dressed in a pink kimono sitting by the water flashed through my head.

"Thanks, ya old hag," I yelled, passing by the old woman and streaking toward the woods.

"Ye truly are the densest beast I have ever had the displeasure of knowing."

**So there ya go. Part 2 of this chapter is more interesting than part 1 and since I originally typed this chapter as one, the second part is all ready to go! As soon as I get one review I'll post it!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Sooo here's the second part of chapter 3. You know how Kagome sometimes talks to herself? Well there's some (a lot) of that in this chapter. Don't freak it's not too bad or long. (I think). Oh and btw, I thought I'd mention my chapters will always start out with Kagome's POV unless I say otherwise.**

**Enjoy!**

Walking through the woods, the sky was a dark sea of velvet and the moon a bright, glistening orb cresting in its waves. No clouds tarnished the crystal clear, starry night and everything could be seen. Trees towered over stock-still, waist high grass, far taller than every imaginable. Moonlight seeped through the highest leaves, washing the forest in a blur of black and white, creating odd, geometric patterns that splashed across my bear arms and legs. It was like stepping into an old movie from decades ago full of cliché, ancient samurai's slashing each other to bits. I slapped my forehead, realizing that I _belonged_ in one of those films.

Shadows flitted through the foliage, darting from one branch to the next, taunting my paranoia. Leaves would shake in random far apart places, and every time my uneasiness would skyrocket a little higher.

_It's just the squirrels. Yeah, they're just looking for nuts._

The feeling from back at the hut hadn't disappeared and I was constantly glancing over my shoulder searching for something-anything-but with every nervous peep came nothing. I was sure I was being followed. _But by what?_

"Why, of all places, did I decide to take a walk in the forest? In the dark. Alone. At night."

A warm, swirling sensation pooled in the base of my skull. _A jewel shard. _It was like an unending, sun-warmed soda pouring into every fissure, every void, of my head. It was neither chilled nor scalding, but perfectly, satisfyingly lukewarm and completely everywhere. There was no way of getting rid of the pounding, encompassing feeling; not until the shard was wholly purified. But that was only because I was far enough away from the shard that I only vaguely its aura. _Probably the one from the other day. _Closer was a whole other story, though.

The night was silent, the crunching of my footsteps the only noise that broke the quiet. No wind rustled the trees, no crickets sang a tune, no animals scurried about in search of a midnight snack. The quiet was deafening, so much so, that my ears rang.

"I can't believe I even _considered_ Inuyasha murdered... What's wrong with me?" I screamed, grabbing fistfuls of hair and pulling. "He was here the whole time! Besides, it's Inuyasha! He wouldn't intentionally _physically _hurt a human."

'**Course, what else would I use it for?"**

_I guess I can't say the same for verbally. _I sighed. "What's with all these crazy ideas today? First I think Inuyasha killed my family, which is completely untrue any way you look at it, and second I think about using the jewel to bring them back from the dead!" I loosed a short dry laugh. "I'm being ridiculous! Even if I did use the jewel to bring them back, I wouldn't want them to turn out like Kikyo."

_The jewel always grants a wish, but not always in the way the wisher desires most._

"Yeah, definitely better if I just stop any thought process at all," I murmured, coming upon the Goshinboku.

I walked to its thick, knotted trunk and plopped to its foot. After the identification, I'd laid at the foot of the tree of ages in my time for hours, unthinking. Just being. It was weird how I could sit in the same exact spot in two different centuries. I bet no one else has ever been able to do what I've done. I mean, c'mon. Let's see someone else jump into a well and come out in the feudal era! Even more unbelievable, I've killed something! I've actually taken something's life! I laughed. "Through all this craziness though, I've still somehow managed to make some amazing friends and even fall in lo-"

I sighed. "There I go thinking again."

"Oh hello, dearie!"

I flinched. What the heck? " Uhh, hello?" I called, wondering if I'd imagined the sound.

_Just the squirrels._

"What do you want most in this world?" The voice cooed.

_Okay, definitely not the squirrels._

I scanned the surrounding trees. Nothing lurked, but the shadows. "Who's there?" I asked, reaching for my bow and arrow and realizing with horror I hadn't brought them.

"Only the person who'll make your dream of dreams come true!"

"Is that supposed to mean something to me?" I asked. _I'm being so rude! What's gotten into me!_

I started to apologize, but was cut off. "Why, yes of course my sweet. What do you want most that's furthest from your grasp?"

_What? Who is this nutbar? _"Show yourself!" I yelled, real panic surfacing. "I'm warning you! I've got friends with tempers!"

To the right, a girl about my age stepped from the shadows, an unnatural white glow emanating from her pale skin. She donned a sky-blue child's garb that barely skimmed the tops of her thighs featuring green and black swirls. Her features were small and pixie-like, her tiny ears pointed. She wore her white-blonde hair long with side bangs sweeping across her wide grey eyes. _Funny, I didn't know they had side bangs back in the feudal era._

That should've immediately tipped me off. Something wasn't right.

"I have heeded your command," she said, crossing her arms and drumming long, slender fingers on her elbows, "Now what?"

_I can't believe it. She's asking _me_ what to do?_

"Oh, sugar, I can read your thoughts so you might as well say anything you want to my face," she spoke in a soft, baby voice.

"Okay?" _Creep._

"Again. I can here you," she sang, lifting her chin and closing her eyes.

"Alright," I said, more confident than before. "What's your name and why are you here?"

"Doesn't matter what my name is and I'm here to restore what's gone from your life!" she said excitedly.

"And that would be...?" I asked, standing on the tree's roots.

Exasperated she continued. "Isn't there anything you've lost with no return recently?"

Images of my mother, brother, and gramps immediately popped into my head before I could even think to, uhh… not think.

"Ahhh, so there is!" she shrieked, clasping her hands together and bouncing to my side. She grasped my hands and her expression fell into seriousness. She stared into my face and I was suddenly transfixed by the depth of her haunting, grey eyes. "What would you do to have your family back?"

Not trusting my words I thought my answer. _Nothing, I don't need them back._

Her eyes flashed purple, red, green, yellow, blue, orange, black, and back to gray over and over again, cycling. It was overpowering. I couldn't look away.

"And what would they say if they could hear you now?" She asked quietly in staccato. Her eyes flashed white and my chest flooded with guilt and misery. _I'm being controlled!_

I shoved the emotions away, focusing on the good to offset the bad feelings. _Inuyasha._ Her eyes flashed white again, glowing brighter with each passing second. Regret and sadness swamped my heart except this time, I couldn't shove the feelings away. They were bottomless and stemmed from every memory I had. Even the good. I wasn't totally sure I wanted push away that emotion. With it came a sense of power. I was suddenly stronger and tougher, yet dominated. I succumbed to the sadness and remorse. It was my lifeline. Without it, I was nothing. I let the emotion flow.

"My, my you're a persistent little thing, but everyone gives in eventually." _It's all my fault they're dead. I should be doing everything in my power to get them back! _The thoughts were not mine. They were forced into my head, by the girl standing before I could not stop them. "That's right. They would be disappointed and angry if you didn't save them when you had the chance. They would never forgive you. They would never see or speak to you in the afterlife. They will not watch over you from death because they will not care. All because you didn't grant them the salvation they so rightfully deserved."

In a daze, I asked, "What do I have to do?"

"Make a wish," she whispered, squeezing my hands, eyes shifting to a permanent gold.

I knew I was being controlled, I _knew. _But there was nothing I could do to stop myself. Her gold eyes were intensifying, sucking any free will, any resistance I had left, from my mind. _I love you, which is why I have to save you. _"I wish my family was alive."

She let go of my hands and twirled away, laughing maniacally. The fog lifted from my senses and thought process slowly pooled back into my brain. My hands flew to my head and clawed at the skin.

"You tricked me." I said in a low voice.

"No shit, little girl," she replied, twirling her hair with one finger.

"You're gonna wish you'd never met me." _Or, rather, Inuyasha and Tetsusaiga._

"I'd like to see you try."

My vision went red. "Who are you? What do you want with me?"

She laughed her small baby laugh, dropped her hair, and stood, feet shoulder width apart, arms stretched outward. "I am the embodiment of misery and unfulfilled wishes. I transcend time and all its limitations, which is how I became aware of your 'dilemma' if you will. I feed off of people's desires and the sadness from which they originate. I control mortal's emotions and create sorrow. I instill these feelings of want and greed upon my prey, intensifying them until they crack. When my subjects make a wish for their desires or what they've had that's vanished off of those negative feelings, I gain power." She smiled evilly.

"So, I just had to wish for something? Couldn't you have just told me that?"

"No," she blinked her large eyes, "Where's the fun in that?"

"Okay so you've got your power. Now what? You go on your merry way and I go back to my life feeling like garbage."

She put a finger to her chin, thinking. "Yeah, pretty much except for one small detail," she said, squinting and holding her thumb and forefinger together.

"What? My eyes get to change colors too?"

"Nope. Not even close! You get your wish!"

"Wha-?"

"Oh, you still get your wish. Didn't I mention?"

"I think I'd remember if you did! You can't do that. It's not right! You can't just bring back the dead!"

She laughed. "Who ever said anything about bringing them back to life?"

I sputtered, "But-What-You said-Huh?"

She laughed. "My power comes from the manipulation of those wishes. The more I twist them, yet keep them exactly as the wisher asked, the more power I receive. It's like a big game."

My heart sank. As much as I wished my family could stay as they are now, I'd still hoped there was a way to get them back to how it had been before the accident.

"See!" she exclaimed, eyes brightening. "You did wish your family was here with you! I can guarantee you'll forget they were ever dead!"

"Forget… wait no!"

A wrecking ball force crushed my body. My limbs contorted and condensed until it felt like I was compacted into a small box. The pain was instantaneous and unimaginable. The last thing I saw before I shut my watering eyes was the girl with her arms stretched, palms up, head tilted to the sky, and metallic, silver beacons of light pouring from her eyes. I opened my mouth to scream, but no words came. Only air, until, hope against hope, noise made it to my lips.

"INUYASHA!"

And everything went white.

####

I jumped through the trees, meticulously combing the air for Kagome's scent. It was nearly impossible to catch the trail since she hadn't followed any set path. For some god forsaken reason she'd decided to flounder through the thick foliage with no particular goal set in mind.

I came to a halt on the top branch of huge oak, shaking the entire tree. I crouched and sniffed the air searching for a straightforward path. _Man, it's like she was TRYING to confuse me._ Her scent twisted throughout itself, winding back and forth in circles, zigzagging in sharp turns and dead ends. I closed my eyes to strengthen my concentration. Inhaling deeply, I tried to pinpoint her true path. Of course my focus was all shot to hell when a large _something_ crashed into me.

I was thrown from the branch, but caught myself with one hand on another before crashing to the ground. I looked up, expecting to find a rock or a small mountain, but found nothing. _What the hell was that?_

"INUYASHA!"

My ears flicked, instantly recognizing the shrill scream. _Because who could forget something so high-pitched and annoying _I thought frowning.

I let go of the branch and fell to the ground. I hit the forest floor running, flattening bushes and leveling a few small trees out of my way. An electric charge zapped through the air, decimating my ears and raising the hairs on the back of my neck. I stopped dead in my tracks. I threw my hands over my ears, trying to block any of the strident sound, but it was no use. Even through my hands the noise was just as forceful as ever.

It was over before it started and I dropped my hands to my sides. "Kagome!"

I felt my lips shape around her name and my tongue flap in my mouth, but all I heard was the pounding of blood in my ears and a deafening silence. My hearing was gone.

Suddenly, a bright dot of light flickered in the corner of my eye. It was roughly a mile away, but my vision was more than able to see the minute speck. I squinted. _What the hell is that?_ The flame was right by the tree of ages and unmoving. _Last time I checked there wasn't any water by the tree._

Suspicious I took a step forward, but was knocked flat on my back by a violent gust of wind before I could get anywhere. My neck snapped against a rock and pain shot through my head. I quickly sat up, rubbing my forehead to see that the night was no longer dark.

A blazing column of white light erupted just behind the Goshinboku, igniting the night like a bolt of lightning. It was like a massive white fire, but nothing burned in its wake. It swallowed the trees, carving a definite path through the forest, quickly advancing.

Picking myself off the ground, I blindly ran through the dense forest, every fiber of my being screaming "Run! Get the hell out of here!" But there was nothing I could do. Panic gripped my raw muscles as I was fully engulfed in the searing light.

####

Every nerve in my system scorched, my skin crawling. The hair on my head electrocuted the delicate, pale skin the sun had never seen. My nails ripped from their hollows, my eyes liquidated and poured from their sockets. My flesh melted revealing hard white bone that blackened and disintegrated.

The pain I felt at this moment, inside my mind and outside my body, was vastly greater than that of the loss of my family or the realization of not being loved in return. No competition. This was hands down the most agonizing, horrendous, appalling feeling ever to have struck my soul.

When I opened my eyes, all I saw was a white mist hanging in the night air. It was neither dewy nor moving, but completely unnatural. It reflected the forest and my own emaciated body, my eyes that stared at nothing. When I reached to feel, to touch, the dust that should've been the only remains of the person formerly known as Kagome, I found something utterly different in both touch and sight.

I was completely fine.

####

As the light dissipated I realized without much surprise that my hearing had returned.

"So suddenly a fire that doesn't burn explodes and I go deaf. That's not a coincidence." A scream tore through the dark from the direction of the tree. "And then there's that."

I took off sprinting, ripping Tetsusaiga from its sheath as I ran. The screamer didn't pause for breath, but kept on endlessly shrieking. _That's my Kagome _I thought sarcastically. I couldn't help, but laugh at her antics. _Does she honestly think I'm going to leave her alone? _Only when the night fell silent did I frantically push myself even faster.

"Kagome!" I yelled with no response.

Arriving at the tree of ages, I quickly sniffed the air, but there was nothing to smell. _It's like she was never here. _Her scent was completely gone and there was no trace of another human or youkai.

"Something's not right," I muttered to myself.

A small groan drifted from the other side of the Goshinboku along with rustling leaves and cracking bark. I dashed around the tree, annoyed at my own ignorance. _Use your brain, Inuyasha. Look around._

The only thing in the moonlit clearing was a white residue that coated the tips of the grass. "Kagome!" I called.

Another small whimper quietly wafted from the tree of ages. I spun to find Kagome sprawled across the thick roots that branched from the trunk of the Goshinboku. Her eyes flickered beneath her lids as she tried to force them open.

I rushed to her side, quickly sitting, and pulled her into my lap. Glancing at my surroundings, I watched as a thin white mist evaporated before my eyes into nothing. Just like Kagome, it had no scent. I let go of her arm to trace a claw through the fog. A layer of white scum coated my nail, but as soon as I shook my hand to get rid of the gunk, it dissolved into mist again. _This just gets weirder and weirder._

I looked back down at the girl in my arms. Her hair was knotted and cascaded to the ground over my leg. Her pale face was sweaty and coated in grime and soot. Her highly inappropriate clothes were charred and crumbling at the edges. _But somehow she still looks_… FOCUS! "Kagome," I said, shaking her. "Wake up."

She stayed silent, unmoving.

"Kagome, c'mon you gotta get up!" I said, marginally louder.

She groaned again, this time slightly opening her wide, brown eyes, but hastily closing them. My shoulders relaxed and tension I hadn't realized I'd been holding breezed from my muscles. She squeezed her lids together, wrinkling her nose, and cracked one eye open so that a sliver of brown peeked through her thick, dark lashes. Immediately, they snapped open wide and she violently jerked out of my arms landing hard on the packed dirt.

"Well I knew I was a repulsive hanyou, but I thought you were aware of that too," I said, sarcasm dripping.

She didn't say anything, just looked me up and down, confusion clouding her body language. Her eyes were wide and calculating. Still sitting, she slowly began scooting away, her arms visibly shaking.

"Alright you've lost it. Kagome what's going on?"

She stopped scooting and I raised an eyebrow in her direction. All of sudden she started uncontrollably laughing.

I frowned. "Kagome?"

She suddenly stood and lunged toward my body. I was completely unprepared and she tackled me to the ground. Straddling my waist, she leaned towards my head and… grabbed my ears.

No one. Touches. My. Ears.

I snapped up and she flew off my body landing in a heap next to my legs, somehow still giggling. "What the HELL is going on?"

"You have cat ears!" she said, laugh and diving for them again.

"If you haven't noticed that by now, you're even stupider than I thought, wench," I said dryly, gently shoving her away. "And their dogs ears, dammit!"

"Do you have normal ears?"

"Does it look like I do?" I asked, lifting my hair.

"Have you ever had a haircut?"

"Does it matter?"

"Why don't you wear shoes?"

"About that…"

"Are you wearing a unitard?"

"Am I what?"

"Have you ever trimmed your fingernails?"

"SHUTUP! Geez what's with the rapid fire?"

"Do you-"

"No more questions. What. Happened?" I asked, placing my hands on her shoulders.

She pulled away. "I'm fine."

"Not what I asked, but good." I smiled. "So then what happened here?"

"I really wish I could tell you, I really do…"

"So spit it out then, wouldja?"

"One more question? Please," she gave me a puppy-dog face, which, because of my nature, I was obligated to acquiesce.

I folded my arms waiting.

"Who are you?"

**Alright, so I haven't been getting much feedback. At all. I'm not sure if you guys really want me to continue or not. If you do PLEASE let me know through review. If I don't get much response then I guess I'll just delete the story. No sense in writing a lost cause! :) **

**Excerpt from next chapter (if I continue): **

"**In some ways, she will be like a newborn babe. She will have no recollection of anything that has transpired in her life, but will be completely aware of anything that she has learned. Like reading, writing and any basic knowledge.**


	5. Chapter 5

**So I was home from school sick today and decided to update! Thanks for all the positive feedback so far. You guys are the best!**

"Are ye sure ye suffered nay a blow to the head, child?"

I bit my lip, trying to remember something from before-anything, but nothing came. I was completely in the dark. "I'm so sorry," I apologized, voice cracking. "I really wish I could help you, believe me I do, but I just… I can't…" My hands met my face and the tears rushed through my fingers.

"Oh, Kagome." A voice came from behind. A pair of arms wrapped around my torso and a silky head rested on my shoulder. Without meaning to, I shuddered away, drawing back from the human beside me. The person instantly released me and I turned to face a woman with worried eyes. "Kagome?" she asked.

I could tell by her still form and tense expression that she was waiting for some kind of answer that satisfied her. I thought hard, searching the deep recesses of my mind, but where there had once been memory, lay only a deep, black void. I was searching for some face that matched the woman's dark hair, brown eyes, and pink and green attire through the hazy mist. My head pounded from the strain of searching through heaps of white nothing, stabs of pain shooting through my forehead. I bit my tongue, eyes shut, and furrowed my brow in concentration. Not even a tickle.

I knew what it felt like to remember something on the tip of my tongue. My body, not my mind, remembered the sensation, but it wasn't happening now. There was nothing left to remember, to place, I couldn't even forget anything because there was nothing _to_ forget.

I didn't have a clue who this girl was.

I looked to her again and slowly shook my head, feeling awful. I started to apologize, but before I could, she hid her face and hastily walked out of the hut; however, not before I saw the watery sheen in her eyes.

I was in a foreign place with alien people who knew me and expected me to recognize them in return. Talking to these people who expected a reaction from me, who thought I_ knew_ them and could call them by name, was disconcerting. The feeling that I should know these people who spoke to me, was overwhelming. Each new person I met with would greet me, smile politely, or carry out some kind of nice gesture that only filled me with panic. There wasn't even the sense that I'd known these people once before. Just the sense that they were-used-to be my friends.

_Long story short, this is NOT going to be easy._

They knew me. I didn't know them. They knew where they were. I didn't. Not knowing; I think that's what scared me the most.

Sighing, I turned back to the haggard, old woman. "Let me guess. That's someone else I'm definitely supposed to remember."

"Kagome, do not be too hard on yourself. Let it come back to ye."

"But what if it doesn't? Not gonna lie, it feels a _little_ strange not being able to remember _anything_ for the life of me and I'm not exactly loving this empty wind blowing through my head where thought process used to take place. I feel nothing towards anyone or anything except guilt that I can't remember. But even more than that I guess I'm just… I am…I'm scared," I admitted, voice trembling. By this time, my hands shook violently and tears plummeted in a constant waterfall down my cheeks, my headache quickly intensifying into a full-blown migraine. I could see the old woman's helpless expression and knew I probably should've calmed down, but I couldn't. I was freaking out. "I probably shouldn't be even talking to you right now. You could be a psychopath serial killer for all I know!"

But looking at her small, shriveled form, I knew for sure that she was probably not going to whip out a knife and slit my throat. "Kagome, I promise ye I will do everything within me power to return ye stolen memories."

There it was again. That unknowing, terrifying void that someone knew me, but I didn't know them. Chills ran down my spine.

"I really appreciate the thought, but that can't be possible," I said, questioning the woman's state of mind.

Her simple reply startled me. "Keep in mind child that there are some things in this world that are not what they first appear to be." She turned to face a mountain of papers in the corner of the small, wooden hut, completely disregarding the perplexed look I shot her.

"Thanks then, I guess." As an afterthought I added, "I'm sorry I yelled. I'm just… I guess I just don't know what to think. I feel horrible for these people."

She turned from her mess with slightly narrowed eyes. "And why is that, my child?"

"If _I _feel this awful about losing my memory, I can't even begin to imagine how everyone I knew feels. They must feel awful!" Quickly I added, "I did have friends, right? I wasn't some mental recluse who sat in a corner sucking her thumb all day, was I?"

"Tis proof right there!" The woman paused, laughing. "The Kagome we've known is not forever lost!"

"What do you mean?" I asked, freezing, shivers once again running down my back at the mention of my name.

"I think it best if ye figure that out on ye own."

"But I need something to go on here! All I know is that I'm a sixteen year old girl named Kagome. That's it. C'mon, help a girl out here!"

She repeated her previous statement, though slightly less blunt.

_Of course _I , I spun on my heel, hurriedly attempting to escape any more conversation, when I stopped a the sound of the woman's voice.

"Her name was Sango."

I froze. "Who?"

"The one ye moments ago spoke with."

"Sango," I said, seeing how it tasted in my mouth. "That's a pretty name. Now if only I knew what possible use she could have for that big boomerang thing on her back."

The old woman laughed out loud. "Oh, tis okay, child. Tis not your fault. It will all come back to ye."

_Didn't she already say that? Weird…_

The old, wrinkly woman turned back to her messy, pile of what I now believed to be scrolls and began meticulously digging through the clutter. "Uhh, if you don't mind my asking," I began, fiddling with the hem of my skirt. "You said 'we've' before. Did I know you? I mean, before, ya know, I lost any and all recollection."

Her back stiffened and she dropped the scroll she'd been perusing with a slight rustle. Slowly she turned, smiling with her mouth, but not her eyes. "Kaede. I am the head priestess of this village, child."

It had been obvious as soon as I'd walked into the hut earlier that I'd known the priestess. Her speech, body language, even her expressions were all more intimate than to be expected from a stranger. Or in my case, a forgotten friend. But when she'd told me her name, I had anticipated a… I don't know, a rush of warmth or a sudden return of any and all memories labeled "Kaede", but no such thing.

_At least I know I'm not alone. Anymore. _But there was still one thing nagging at the back of my mind.

"And… the boy with the dog ears?"

She gasped, her eyes growing wide. "Surely…"

"What?" I asked, confused.

"It's nothing," she replied, a little too quickly for my taste.

"Kaede...?" I demanded, folding my arms.

"Inuyasha."

####

"You're telling me that you have NO idea what's wrong with her?"

"How could ye expect I would? I have been aware of the predicament for little over an hour," the priestess replied, reaching for one of the many scrolls piled beside her wrinkly carcass.

"What's there not to get, ya old hag! She can't remember a damn thing!"

"I am well aware of that Inuyasha, now calm yourself. She is fine."

"Kagome is _not_ okay," I growled.

"Why should ye care anyway, ye lazy dog? I thought ye spared no feelings for mortal beings?"

"I _don't_," I snarled, spit flying from my mouth.

The old priestess was right. Calming down, though, was not exactly working out. I was hyperaware of my surroundings, of each function of my body. Stinging and hot, blood raced through my veins much faster than necessary, beads of sweat secreting from every pore on my body. My heart pounded ridiculously fast, thumping hard in my chest. The bitter stink of the old woman's collection of herbs heightened and I was scowling so hard, the grains of wood in the walls appeared to vibrate.

"Breathe, dog. The child is fine in physicality and seems to be in a well state of mind. Ye should count ye many undeserved blessings that she is coherent at all."

Anger weaning, my blood cooled and the sweat steamed from my body in misty sheets. _Kagome is fine._ My vision snapped back to normal perception and… well the herbs still smelled like roasted shit. _For the most part, she's okay._ I was surprised though as I watched in shock as my claws withdrew into my fingers and back to original length.

"Wha...!"

I watched in dismay as the old priestess merely nodded. Like she conversed with a slobbering, furious full youkai all the time.

"It seems ye care more for the lass than ye let on."

_Do not _I thought. "Feh."

Still gaping at my outstretched fingers, the old hag continued. "Ye must be careful around Kagome. As of this moment, she has seen neither hide nor hair of youkai. I would be willing to bet my bow that she is not aware of the miko powers that lay within her either. Ye must do ye best not to show Kagome any hostility or ill will. Ye do not want to scare her off."

"Tell that to the pervy monk," I muttered dryly.

"I mean it Inuyasha. Do not be a fool about this. Kagome may not have been afraid of ye the first time the two of ye met, but this is a whole other chapter. Do not take it so lightly."

Fists curling, ire boiling I yelled, "Why should I? It's not my fault she's like this!"

"Save it ye lazy dog. Ye do not comprehend what the repercussions of ye actions may cause. Kagome isn't the same Kagome ye knew two days ago." Mouthing the words 'No Really?', I put on a bored expression. She tactfully ignored it. "In some ways, she will be like a newborn babe. She will have no recollection of anything that has transpired in her life, but will be completely aware of anything that she has learned. Like reading, writing and any basic knowledge. She has no memory of her travels, her friendships, or any part of her life. I doubt it she remembers that she's a recent orphan."

"But she's obviously still the same Kagome," I said warily. "It's not like she can forget her personality."

"But think about it. Memories make a person a person, Kagome included. She no longer retains any."

"So?"

"So, she maintains some of her former personality, but a majority of it no longer resides within her mind. I have already seen it for myself. She is the Kagome we know, caring for others before herself, but she is different in a way I cannot begin to describe."

Gradually, I felt the smile wipe off my face. "Isn't there anything I-WE-can do to help her? Get her memory back I mean. There's gotta be something."

"I do not think there is any natural way to restore her forgotten memories, but if anything, I would seek out the person who holds them captive."

"So what you're telling me is that some sorry bastard out there got bored and just decided on a whim to steal at chance a human girl's memory? Wow, what a life!" I said, sarcastically rolling my eyes.

She gave me a pointed look and hobbled back to her reading, inadvertently, kicking me out of her house. "That is _exactly_ what I am saying. Maybe not in the precise manner ye believe, but essentially yes. "

"Yeah, right," I chanted, turning to exit the hut.

"If ye do not believe in me, I take it ye have thought up ye own explanation."

I froze midstride, nearly falling on my face. "Uhh.."

"Tis what I thought."

_We can't all be geniuses _I thought. _Someone has to do the dirty work._ I felt myself unconsciously reach for Tetsusaiga as I collected myself, and realized with irritation I'd left it back at the Goshinboku. _Damn, no wonder I transformed. _As I rose to go retrieve the forgotten sword, one more thing pricked at the back of my mind before I could leave in what would more than likely end up to be humiliation. _I gotta know._

_Here's goes any shard of pride I've got left. Not that I had much to begin with._

"Uhh, Kaede?"

Her head snapped up from the scroll, undoubtedly in pure shock alone that I hadn't called her some colorful version of 'old hag.' "Yes, Inuyasha?"

"She-Kagome-didn't say or mention anything about uhh who I-uhh I mean who brought her back to your shack. Did she?"

Her expression softened and her eyes were suddenly shiny. _What's with women and crying these days? _"I am sorry, Inuyasha. I am afraid she still does not recall who ye are."

The only outward sign I gave that I'd heard her at all was an ear drooping and that was barely perceptible to even me. _And this is exactly why I don't bother hoping for anything anymore._ I turned to stalk out of the hut, determined to find Kagome, when the hag stopped me.

"Inuyasha, for several days I have wondered. Before, when ye went to seek Kagome from her era, what was is ye said that caused her to run off in such a hurry?"

_How did I know this was going to come up?_

I sighed heavily, preparing myself for a face full of purification salts or hey!-another sealing arrow. _That would probably be better than the earful I'm about to get._

"I told her to leave and never come back."

**Awwww, Inuyasha was so focused on getting Kagome back he left Tetsusaiga behind. Okay, it's unrealistic-so what!-it's freaking cute. ****Just like me, if I don't get any less than 3 reviews, my fic will catch the "discontinued" virus. (See what I did there? I'm sick. The story gets sick. Ha! No. Okay…)**

**Now I get to go make up a mountain of homework.**

**Whee.**

**Excerpt from next chapter: **

"**Do you honestly expect me to believe that I can time travel through a hole in the ground?"**

** "Well, yes."**


	6. Chapter 6

**Wooowww! Sooo many positive comments! You kept my fic healthy (still not funny? Shut it.)! I love my fans to death just to let ya know. Here's the next chapter and it is kinda filler-ish in the beginning, but some really important stuff goes down about halfway through.**

** Enjoy!**

"Would you do me the honor of bearing my child?" I watched in complete and utter disbelief as the man in purple wrapped his arms around my torso, bringing his hands to rest on the small of my back and my head to lay on his chest, and gave me a big, breath depriving hug.

"Excuse me?" I asked, blushing furiously. Squirming in his hold, I noticed several villagers pass us by in the street, but not one reacted to our little 'moment'; like they saw this kind of thing every day.

"Seeing as I will no longer be a part of this world for much longer, producing as many offspring as possible before my passing is crucial to the continuation of my family line."

I wriggled my hands up to his chest and shoved, but he didn't budge and unfortunately for me, took it the wrong way. "Now, now at least wait until we're in private, my dear," he crooned.

I blanched at the thought. "You want me to _what_?" I asked, incredulous.

"Come now, am I truly that displeasing to the eye?" One of his hands moved up to stroke my hair and to press my head against his (well built) chest while the other moved southward to stroke something else entirely.

I nearly jumped out of skin at his uhh... touch and pressed against his chest with newfound determination. "Don't you know it's rude to grope a girl you've just met!" I shrieked, frantic. Suddenly, he released me and I flew back, landing in a heap in the middle of the dirt road.

"And then there's that. Were you raised by wolves or something?"

"Miroku!" A voice shouted.

The man stiffened and quickly lent a hand. I gratefully accepted and he, albeit violently, pulled me to my feet, I nearly falling forward on my face "I'm afraid I must take my leave," he said, and rushed away, robes streaming behind him.

"Don't even think about it!" A flash of red soared by and suddenly the boy with the dog ears-Inuyasha-was standing between the man and I.

The man (Miroku?) halted and slowly turned, face white as snow. "Inuyasha!" He greeted. "How are you doing on this fine day?"

"Cut the crap, monk," Inuyasha snapped. "Shutup and quit antagonizing Kagome before I hand your sorry womanizing ass over to Sango."

His face whitened unbelievably paler and he threw his hands in front of his face. "Yes, yes of course," he sputtered. Before leaving, the man peeked around Inuyasha and, smiling, said, "Give it some thought!"

"IRON REAVER-!"

"I'm gone, I'm gone!" And suddenly, all that was left of the man was a cloud of swirling dust.

The boy, cracking his fingers, turned to face me. "Sorry 'bout that. The man can't control himself."

I snorted. "Figured that out when he tried to grab my butt."

I swear his eyes flashed red, but considering everything that had happened today, I was convinced I was seeing things. "Yeah, the rest of us are convinced his brain is actually located in his-"

"OKAY!" I interrupted. "So, is he always like that? You know, a lecher?"

"Who Miroku? Ha!" He laughed, and began walking towards the edge of the village, long, white hair swishing back and forth. "What kinda question is that?"

I watched, amused, as he flinched and spun around. "Oh, hell." I promptly burst out laughing at his expression. He looked like a lost puppy.

"Oh, crap. I'm- something funny?" He raised an eyebrow.

"Just (gasp) you!"

"Yeah, I'm a regular comedian." He crossed his arms. "This is definitely not funny."

But that's the problem. It was! After I stopped feeling mopey and sorry for myself, thought about the situation for two and a half seconds, it really, truly was hilarious. Not to mention absolutely ridiculous. A monk, of all people, had just come on to me and asked if I would have his kid because apparently he had a death sentence. I was speaking to a boy who wore fake dog ears 24/7. Can we say lunatic? For the love of crap I had no memory! _Hello, disturbing life, my name is Kagome._

As my bittersweet laughter dwindled, I noticed the boy staring at me in what could only be described as in a disturbing way; like I was some specimen up for experimentation. "Is this the part where I find out you're really a 40 year creep who preys on the emotions and bodies of teenage girls?" I asked dryly, not expecting an answer.

"No!" He barked. "This is the part where you follow me. I wanna show you something."

I scoffed. "Give me one good reason why I should trust you."

"I spared you from an interesting afternoon with our good friend and lech, Miroku."

_He's got a point _I thought cringing. "Fine. I'll go with you," I said. "Wait. Did you say friend? Please tell me I was not 'friends' with-_what_ are you _doing_?"

The boy was doubled over, hands on his knees, and looking back at me expectantly.

"Can someone not hold it in any longer?" I made a pouty face.

"Get on my back!" He snapped.

"Is that supposed to be a pickup line?" I asked, barely suppressing giggles.

"No. I mean get on my back!"

"But we hardly know each other," I said, erecting a mock-disappointed face. "And believe it or not I do remember how to walk."

"Get. On. My. Back," He ordered. "Or I can drag you by your hair. Whichever you prefer, your highness," he said sardonically.

"Your wish is my command, oh mighty Lord of cats." I tentatively walked over, unsure of what to do. I stood behind him, fidgeting for a moment before finally deciding on wrapping my arms around his neck.

I gasped as his hands came up around my thighs and he wrenched my legs off the ground. My face grew warm, but my embarrassment was all too soon overshadowed.

"And there dog ears, wench!" he yelled and suddenly I was flying.

So, naturally, I screamed as loud as I could.

"Arghh!" He yelled. "Would you NOT do that right in my ear?"

On impulse, my arms constricted tighter around the boy's neck and I buried my face in his shoulder. Tears streaked across my face as the wind blew in my eyes. The landscape whipped by as the boy ripped across the terrain, his feet pounding out a steady thump-thump. He was moving so fast, it was nearly impossible to focus on any individual object or, for that matter, the scenery. The fact that the current mess of color whizzing by was a mixture of greens and browns, I took it we were passing through a forest. Where there were low-lying branches to hit. Shrubbery to trip over. Innocent, un-expecting animals to kill. I screamed ever louder into his shirt.

"If you don't shut it in the second, I'm gonna drop you!"

Like that was gonna happen.

####

"A well," she said. "You put me through all of _that_ just to show me a stupid hole in the ground?"

"Well, when you put it like that of course it sounds stupid," I said, dryly. "Now, go touch it."

"Seriously? You're joking right?" she asked, skeptical.

I pointed to my face, raising a stoic expression. "Does this look like the face of a joker?"

"Uhh…"

"Go touch it!" I lashed.

"Uhh, sure," she said, rolling her eyes.

"This better work." I mumbled to myself, scowling in frustration. _It has to._

I watched as Kagome strode over to the well and poked it, letting her finger rest there. She turned to me, "Is it supposed to spit purple whales?" she asked, wryly.

"Dammit," I muttered.

"What?" She asked. "Are you okay?"

"Peachy," I spat.

"Then why do look like you could maim or potentially kill the next living thing that dares to cross your path?"

"I always look like this."

She sighed. "Sure you do."

I don't know what I expected. Some flash of light or spark of recognition in her eyes. The well was the one connection left of our two eras together and of her former life. I guess I just thought that maybe if she went near the well… _she'd remember.._.

"Well that was waste of time," I muttered to myself.

"Excuse me?" She demanded, removing her finger from the rim of the well and crossing her arms.

"Nothing."

"No, you said I was a waste of time. Look, it's pretty obvious you don't like me and I get that, but why did you have to drag me out here then? You could've just let me be in the village! Or, hey! You could've just left me back at the tree and not brought me to the town at all! I would've been fine on my own!" she yelled.

"Like hell you would've! You'dve been long dead if I'd left you alone... "And then it occurred to me. _Oh, duh._ "Go jump in it," I commanded.

She scoffed. "One, subject change? Smooth. Two, why would I ever agree to do something like that? Are you nuts?"

"So you can go back to your era!" I admit that probably was not the right thing to say to someone who moments ago had called me nuts. It wasn't my fault her life was this insane.

She loosed a single laugh. "Like time travel? You _are _insane! Do you honestly expect me to believe that I can time travel through a hole in the ground?"

"Well, yes."

She walked over to the edge of the well, unconvinced, and leaned over the rim. "There's nothing in there, but air and water." I seized my opportunity, sneaking up behind her. "Not some-AHHHH!"

I pushed her into the well and jumped in after.

####

Something hard hit me in the back and before I knew it I was plummeting face first into the dark well. _That jerk pushed me in! _

Leaves and vines raced past my falling body as I braced for splashdown into a pool of filthy groundwater. Wind rushed through my hair as I scrabbled for the plants climbing the side of the well with no luck. Tears of frustration leaked from my eyes as my knuckles scraped against rock and my fingers pricked against thorn.

I waited and waited for a cold splash until, panicking, I came to the conclusion that there was and never would be any water. The well was dry.

My muscles tensed, anticipating a new, bone-shatteringly painful demise and just as I was about close my eyes in defeat, a hunk of red raced past me. _Inuyasha._

"You jerk!" I screamed before he disappeared in a flash of blue.

I wish I could say I vanished along with him.

####

I flew out the other side of the well in a burst of blue light, landing steadily on my feet.

_How the hell am I gonna explain this one. _"This is probably gonna sound like a load of crap, but-Kagome?"

I spun around to find myself alone in the bottom of the dark well.

"Kagome!"

I had gone through, but she had not.

####

I continued falling into the deep, dark abyss, my body ramrod straight, slicing through the air.

Suddenly, I knocked into something hard, like glass, slamming to halt. Considering I hit the surface of who knows what face first, I expected to at least see stars and pass out, forget anything there was left to remember-and hey!-hear the nauseating snap as my neck broke in two, but none of the above happened. In fact, I felt fine.

I slowly sat up, thoughts in disarray, to watch the void pulse a revolting shade of orange. I had about two seconds to collect my thoughts before an icy gale zipped through the air. My skin chilled, my chest froze mid-breath, and my hair, which had been oddly flying around my head in every direction, abruptly halted in its path. I couldn't move.

I could only watch as images of death and destruction flew past in the darkness that surrounded my immobilized body. Headless children, disfigured adults. Entire cities up in flames, bodies stacked in random piles. Mismatched body parts, bodily fluids. My mouth was wide in a frozen scream. I expected noise to tear forth from my lips, I tried to shout, believe me, but just as I could not move, I could not utter a sound.

The glassy plate I'd been frozen upon suddenly gave way and I was rushing through air once again. I fell for barely five seconds before I crashed onto another hard, grey surface. From somewhere, deep in my brain, the word _concrete_ came to mind.

There was a barely audible _pop_ and I could move again. My joints unlocked and the scream I'd been trying to let loose finally freed itself. I immediately stopped. I could yell a lot louder than I gave myself credit for.

As soon as I calmed down, I tried to get my bearings. I was surrounded in a hazy red bubble that pulsed every ten seconds or so a blinding shade crimson. A lukewarm wind gusted from the concrete below my incapacitated form, blowing my hair in an upwards stream along with my skirt. I quickly threw my hands over the fabric to cover myself even though there wasn't a soul in sight. Most disturbing of all though, were the quiet human screams that reverberated against the walls of my sphere. They weren't unusually loud, but still held all the terror and fear.

Scenes flashed by outside my bubble at hyper-speed. The pictures shifted so fast I could barely discern one from the other. One moment I would be looking at a river on fire and the next I would be gazing into a solar eclipse. Not until several seconds later did I realize that the particular scene I was looking at had stayed dormant for several moments.

I glanced around myself to find I had merged with the landscape. Sitting on a beach of golden sand, I stared off into the crystal blue ocean. Unexpectedly, an ear-popping bang sounded, and I threw my hands over my ears. I expected to see a car on fire or a menacing killer with a machine gun. Definitely not a storm cloud. Correction: it was not a storm cloud. Just _a _cloud. It rushed by overhead and something near black snow rained down, permeating my bubble and soiling my hair. _Ash? _

The setting shifted.

I placed my hands back in my lap, waiting to see what would come up next, but something wasn't right. At first I couldn't pinpoint the problem. Everything _seemed_ okay, but something was definitely awry. And then it struck me. The wind in my bubble had dissipated. As soon as I'd thought it, a new wind came from my right, knocking me onto my side and taking away my breath. I writhed in the sand that had somehow carried over into my second nightmare, my eyes bugging out of my head as I struggled to take in oxygen. I slowly twisted my gaze to find a towering cloud made of every color of the rainbow vaguely shaped liked a mushroom exploding off in the distance.

The environment switched again.

My breath came back to me in one violent whoosh as I sluggishly sat up, coughing black soot, a newfound headache pounding away. This new scene was far different from the others. It was much more… modern, I guess you could say. I was sitting on a hill blanketed in brown, scratchy grass overlooking the Tokyo Skyline. The sky was black and the unmistakable, sickening stench of death blew in the breeze. From my spot, I could see the bent skyscrapers and office buildings that fabricated what was left of the city and the purple haze that rose from it.

An exceptionally strong gale blew against my back and I was suddenly sitting in the middle of a downtown street. Dead bodies littered the road around my bubble, the thick reek of human decay even more potent in the broken metropolis.

For some reason, I had the urge to glance up. A man in blue floating in a pink sphere nearly identical to mine stood overhead, maniacally laughing with his arms (and I'm sad to say his tentacles as well) outstretched. In his hand he clutched a small, pink rock with a swirl of black at its core that shone against the purple sky. The back of my neck throbbed a sharp, painful jab as he paused in his tirade, looking bewildered. He mouthed inaudible words and suddenly shattered, bits of flesh (and tentacle) were flying everywhere.

I started screaming (like any rational person would) and a piece of something I was too afraid to look at hit me in the back of the head.

And then it was all over.

Gone were the screams, the red sphere, and the overwhelming stench of death. I was back in the well, in the darkness, but my mind was trapped within itself, speculating, and all I could think was _What the hell just happened?_

_####_

I touched back down in the well, this time in the feudal era, completely and totally confused. _What the hell?_

"Kagome?" I called.

Seeing I was in a well, I didn't have to look very hard to find her. She sat huddled in the corner, sniffling and trembling, mumbling incoherent words.

"Kagome?" I asked, stooping to her level.

"The bodies… the bodies… the people…" she shakily whispered.

I had waited, impatiently at that, in her time for her burst through the well, spewing threats at me all the while, but she had never come. In the state she was in now, it was obvious that she hadn't stayed for a leisurely nap on this side either. _So if she didn't come with me and she didn't stay here, where did she go?_

"Use your words Kagome, what did you see?" I asked.

"He… He _exploded_!" She screeched.

My ears flicked once. "Kagome, where did you go? What did you see?" I asked, gentler this time. I reached for her hand, but she flinched away.

"The beach…" was her simple reply.

_The beach…? There isn't one of those for miles. I wanna go to the beach..._

"C'mon Kagome, if you're not gonna tell me, let's go." I reached for her, but she shrunk against the well. She was pretty shook up, but she'd been through worse. Maybe the hag could get her to talk.

I reached to pick her up again, seeing as she was in no condition to climb out on her own, but she pressed herself against the wall. "GET AWAY!" she yelled.

_What's got her so freaked out? I've never seen her so… afraid. _It bothered me. Seeing her so broken. A slight break in my heartbeat, a veneer of sweat on my forehead, a subtle shake in my hands gave my worry away.

"Alright, let's go." I lunged forward, completely disregarding her protests and grabbing hold of her torso. "And please quit crying!"

"Don't _touch _me!" She shouted, fear lacing her words.

"How's that working out for ya?" I asked, throwing her over my shoulder.

"Arghh!" She screamed in frustration. I quickly scaled the side of the stone wall lining of the well, using the vines as footholds. I leaped out, into the sunlight, and gently sat Kagome down in the grass.

"Now tell me what happened. Why didn't you cross over with me?" I demanded, impatient as ever.

She sat quiet, trembling in the grass, wiping her cheeks with her arms, her sleeves coming away black.

I grabbed her wrist, yanking her forward, and pointed at the black. "Where did this come from?" I asked, befuddled and slightly worried. Slightly.

Before she could answer, another voice cut it. "Inuyasha!" A voice called over the clearing. The hag. She raced as fast as she could, which, given was not that fast, over to the well. Upon arrival, she stood hands on her knees and panting for several seconds before finally wheezing, "I thought I might find ye here."

"Whadya want?" I snapped.

"Believe me, I have no desire to see ye face at the moment unless I have good enough reason."

"Oh no!" I yelled sarcastically. "You can't reach the herbs on the top shelf. Go ask Miroku."

"Listen ye ungrateful puppy." Had she been a man under the age of 50, I personally would have ripped her arms out of there sockets and shoved them down her throat at that comment. "I think I have found word of the thing that has taken Lady Kagome's memories. The two of ye must come quickly to summon her."

**A little bit longer than I'd originally planned, but who really cares! And for those of you wondering where Kaede's reaction is, don't worry. It's coming eventually! Omigosh, I am so excited for the next chapter. Seriously. It's my favorite so far and I got sooo excited I already have it ready to be posted. If anyone can figure out what Kagome's visions are in the well-damn your good! You'll get a shout out!**

** If I don't get at least 4 reviews this fic will become a 'pile of ash in the night.' Ha! ****I'm not a very creative/funny person.**

** Btw, I'm having mass issues with my summary for the story. Any ideas?**

** Excerpt: The color of moon on water, **

**The glow of candles light.**

**The closest will be slaughtered,**

**Fire in the night.**

**(What's this? The title's in the next chapter? Oh my…)**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hello my lovelies! Soooo sorry for the long wait, but track has been rough this year and I've been way too tired when I get home to do much of anything. But anyway here's my favorite chapter since the first one. It was kinda hard to get out, but's it's here. Kagome is extremely… sarcastic in this chapter. Read to find out why!**

** Also if anyone's been getting lots of notices in their inboxes, it's not because I've been updating, but because I've been revising and editing some of the earlier chapters. Nothing major has been changed, but I think I should mention that every chapter will start with Kagome's POV and after the pound signs will switch to Inuyasha's POV or vice versa.**

"Have we got everything?" the woman-Sango!-asked.

"There wasn't much we were in need of to begin with, surprisingly enough. Just the bark of a crying tree-which I presume is a weeping willow, the water of salted lash-tears I believe, shriveled petals of red-dried rose petals, and the one whose left with nothing-Kagome," the pervy-I mean Miroku!-rattled.

"How uplifting," she said sarcastically. "Remind me how any of that has anything to do with summoning a demon?" she asked.

"It doesn't," Inuyasha cut in, finally showing up in the dark, abandoned clearing. "But I have a real bad feeling about this so let's just get it over with."

"Right," Miroku agreed. "Kagome?"

I looked up at the sound of my name, goose bumps racing across my skin, but I knew there was no life in my expression, no light in my eyes. My shakes, tears, and sporadic shrieks of terror had subsided, but I was still thoroughly freaked out, as I should be. After the little 'incident' back in the well, I had no reason whatsoever to trust these people and therefore didn't. If I can't trust these people _not_ to shove me down a well, what can I trust them for?

Had I been able to summon the demon alone, believe me I would've, but there was something about needing four people including myself to perform the summoning. Whatever. I just wanted to get my memory back and leave alive if that was at all possible.

When Inuyasha and I had made it back to Kaede's hut to form a plan as to how to go about summoning this 'demon', she'd explained to me how the well worked. That anyone who passed through its threshold would be forced into another time, but that still hadn't explained the strange visions-if they could even be called that-I saw. Or why Inuyasha had pushed me into the well in the first place.

By the time I'd digested that the well was no ordinary hole in the ground, we were already halfway to the deserted clearing deep in the forest to prepare for the summoning. I'd barely had any time to calm myself down let alone even attempt to decipher what had happened in the well, what any of it meant, or let anyone know about the strange visions. Though, I think I'll be keeping that last bit of information to myself. With these people, who knows how those visions could be used against me.

I could barely contain my emotions and fear at present, not to mention my complete lack of trust in these people. I just couldn't stop thinking about that man in the pink bubble. Something about him, since the first time I'd woken up, danced along the edges of my memory. Something that made my heart race and blood boil. Something bad.

And then there was the whole 'I'm retrieving my memory through voodoo magic' thing going on. _Think about that last sentence, girl. _I'm losing my mind. No pun intended.

I was an outsider lost in my own thoughts, confusion, and wariness at this point and in turn chose not to stand with the others, but to sit off to the side alone.

"We're about to start!" he called.

I stayed motionless. I keep telling myself I just want my memories back so I can get the heck out of here, but what if I don't want them back? What if they're bad? What if there's a reason I don't have them anymore? Did I do this to myself? What if I'm not who I am or… or I'm not…good? I could've been anyone. A medicine woman. A priestess. A murderer. A sister. A wife.

I was shocked out of my speculations when Inuyasha violently grabbed my wrist and pulled me to my feet. I smacked his hand away, to angry to meet his eye. "Don't touch me," I quietly snapped.

"Kagome-"

I turned and began striding off towards the rest of the group. "I can't even look at you right now."

"But Kagome, I said I was sorry!"

I whipped around, a crazed look in my eye. "NO! You didn't!"

"Okay so that was a lie-"

"Just stop talking!" I yelled.

"But-"

"I hate your guts!"

I didn't wait to see his expression, but needless to say the ensuing silence was overwhelmingly large. I fumed my way over to the other two, wordlessly waiting for my own directions.

"Well, okay then. Shall we begin?" the monk asked, trying to break the awkward, but failing miserably. "Everyone has what they need? Yes, okay. Sango, you stand over there." He pointed off to his right. "And Inuyasha you stand over here." He pointed slightly to his left. Together they formed a lopsided triangle.

"Kagome, you stand here in the middle," he motioned.

At first, I couldn't move. I was rooted to the spot in fear. _This is pathetic, being afraid of my own past. I couldn't have been that bad, right?_ But then I thought of the animosity I felt towards Inuyasha and the suspicion of the others. What could that have stemmed from? It had to be a memory, right? And that man… _Who am I kidding? I'm probably a psychopath axe murderer who between killings enjoys roaming the countryside as a street pharmacist!_

I tentatively walked into the center of the triangle, nervous to the very core, and shifted my gaze between Miroku and Sango so that my back was to Inuyasha. "Like this?" I asked.

"That will do," he replied. "Now, I need you to close your eyes and concentrate on where and how you woke up after this _thing_ took you're memories. The scenery, what you felt, who was there, everything."

"Okay."

I began thinking. All I could really think of was Inuyasha. Honestly, I hadn't been paying too much attention to anything else. He had been there, and was strangely enough willing to help me much to my now utter disbelief. At the time, I had been too focused on trying to gain bearings that I would never find and his ears that may or may not be real to really notice anything else. In essence he had been kind of my savior. _Oh how the times very quickly change. _And there was that white gooey stuff, but that's about it.

_Maybe, this is a dream._ _I think I'd like to wake up right about now._ I pinched myself, but shock!-I was still smack in the middle of the twisted séance.

Miroku spoke to the other two in the background. "Sango, you take the rose petals. I need you to place them in a circle around Kagome."

"On it," she said. I heard a slight rustle as she hurriedly rushed around me in a circle, supposedly spreading flower petals.

"Inuyasha, use your claws and cut the bark into four equal pieces." There were three simultaneous crunches as he sliced the wood into fourths. "Now put one piece in each of the four cardinal directions around Kagome.

"Whatever." I heard him slowly place each small piece of bark on the ground.

"And now I will sprinkle tears, happily supplied through my own volition thanks to the actions of Lady Sango, over Lady Kagome." _What's that supposed to mean?_

As I felt the drizzle of water sprinkle over my head, I couldn't help but wonder why each of them was here. Each one of them had dropped everything they were doing to help me, a virtual stranger, get her memory of all things back. We might have been friends before the accident, I get that, but this good of friends? I can't imagine any normal group of friends ever going to such lengths to help one another. Were we really this close or were they indebted to me? Did I make them do something before to force them into helping me? Was my memory loss planned? Were these people my slaves? _Oh no, what've I done?_

And there's my complete and total distrust of them, but they trust me? What's up with that?

"Still thinking, Kagome?" Miroku asked.

"Yep." I took a deep breath. "I'm ready."

"Better be ladies and bastards because this bitch is already here."

**####**

My gaze snapped to a high oak tree silhouetted by the light of the half-moon where the shadow of girl sat reclining in a branch, swinging her feet back and forth over the side. "Show yourself!" I demanded.

With a light giggle that reminded me of a kitten being dragged over hot coals, she leaped from her perch on the branch, her bare feet making the slightest crinkling sound as she hit the grass. She slowly sauntered toward our group, taking her sweet time, as her pale skin glowed and a creepy smile lit her face. My hand immediately flicked to Tetsusaiga, but didn't draw the sword just yet.

The girl promenaded right up to Kagome, who still had her back turned and eyes closed, and tapped her on the shoulder. "Sweetie," she said, Kagome nearly jumping out of her skin. "Do you have any idea how ridiculous you look?"

"Do you have any idea how much I'd enjoy hanging you with your own intestines!" I shot back.

The girl slowly swung towards me, wagging her finger and a disapproving scowl on her face. "Hush now, dog. I'm getting to you. Wait your turn." She turned back to Kagome, I seething in my own frustration. "How are you feeling, sugar? No nasty side effects I hope? No bone swelling, uncontrollable urination, or toe nail loss?"

"Nope, but I do seem to be suffering from a severe case of split ends," she replied dryly. "Oh!" she said, snapping her fingers. "I almost forgot! Silly me. I'm also having a bit of trouble remembering anything everything before the past two days, but that's no big deal." _Huh. Never seen Kagome so sarcastic. She must be seriously pissed off. _

The girl placed a hand on Kagome's shoulder, her incredibly short kimono riding up her thighs. I heard the loud slap of Sango's hand against Miroku's face and a muffled groan of pain. _Of all times now, Monk? _"Oh well, that's to be expected," the girl said. "I mean, that was your wish."

"So it was you that took Lady Kagome's memory?" Miroku asked, still rubbing his face.

"Well, duh. Do ya see anybody else here?" she retorted.

"No it's just I had no idea a beautiful demoness such as yourself was capable of something-"

Her overly-happy, tittering, way too composed countenance suddenly clouded with pure, stark rage. "I'm not a demoness! I am the embodiment of misery, dammit!" She stamped her foot. "I take my power from wounded souls blah, blah, blah. I transcend time and all its limitations yada, yada, yada. Long story short, I'm. Not. A. DEMON!" she paused. "And this little bitch right here," she pointed to Kagome, "had it coming. I could smell her misery from hundreds of miles away. After what you did to her," she pointed to me, "I consider taking her memory was an undeserved favor on my part."

I could do nothing, but stare at the smug look on her small, round face.

"Yes that's right little puppy. I've found myself increasingly infatuated with young Kagome's memory here, and my oh my does she have some interesting little things lurking about in that mind of hers. You've been a very naughty little boy lately concealing-"

Before I knew it, I'd ripped Tetsusaiga from its sheath and was already up in the girl's face, the sword tip millimeters from her nose. "Shut up! I've heard enough," I growled. "Give Kagome back her memory now _before_ I get mad."

"Or what? You can't harm me. Try and I guarantee you'll fail," she batted away the sword with a delicate, shining hand that I really wish I could've ripped from her arm and shoved up her nose. "Threaten me again though and you'll wish you hadn't."

"Fine," I said, lowering the sword. "Will you _please_ give Kagome back her memories?"

"Sure!" she giggled, clapping.

"Really?" I asked, skeptical.

"No, but nice try."

Had I not had Tetsusaiga, I would've gone full youkai on her ass. I vaguely heard Sango 'strongly advising' me to calm down, but I was far beyond rationalization. My teeth clenched and I readjusted my grip on the hilt of the sword, ready to swing the death blow, when a fleshy shape knocked me to the side. I stood there blinking for several seconds before I realized Kagome stood ahead me, glaring at the girl.

"Inuyasha, stay out of this. I can get my own memory back, thank you very much!"

I gaped in shock for several seconds before shouting, "What do you think you're doing wench?"

Completely ignoring me, she said to the girl, "Why me? Did I do something to upset you? Did I cross you? Betray you? Why my memories?"

The girl put a finger to her chin, thinking, then snapped. "Convenience. I was low on power, you were high on misery. Plain and simple as that. I just never thought your mind would be as interesting as it is and have decided to keep it until further notice."

"What do you mean 'interesting'?" Kagome asked.

"Hun, if I told you now, this wouldn't be any fun at all, not to mention your doggy friend would be thoroughly upset. Goodbye now!" she began to walk away.

"You better get back here or I'll…" Kagome trailed.

"Or you'll what? You're powerless without your memory and therefore can do me no harm! Now I really must be on my way. Toodles!" She wiggled her fingers and turned to strut off into the night.

But there was no way in hell I was letting this girl leave alive with Kagome's memory.

"Get back here, bitch!" I screamed. I leapt for her retreating form and sliced through her torso with Tetsusaiga. Or attempted to, I should say. 'Cause this is my life. Nothing is ever that easy. A small squeak from Kagome and faint snip later, the girl suddenly had a whole new hairdo.

She slowly spun to face me, malice in her eyes. "You. Did. _Not_. Cut. My. Hair. This was my favorite hair! Do you have any idea how long it took me to get this shade and luscious cut?" She shrieked, fingering the back of her scalp.

I stared at the metallic, blonde strands lying in the grass and the diagonal cut in her locks. "Well, gosh, when you put it that way… nope still don't care," I said matter of fact.

"What he means," Miroku cut in, "Is that he's very sorry-"

"Not really, but if it helps," I started, "I didn't mean to cut your hair. I was really just trying to kill you." I began picking at the dirt underneath my claws.

"Shut your face!" she screeched. "And pseudo-apology not accepted jackass! Humph. And to think I even considered taking you for a husband."

I groaned. "Tell me I imagined that last sentence."

"Oh dear God," I Sango murmured, exasperated.

"I'm going to pretend I didn't just here that and that I'm not potentially scarred for life, but do you honestly think I'm going to let your sorry carcass live to see the sunrise?" I asked.

The girl's eyes flashed a brilliant silver that left me seeing a rainbow of stars. "I told you not to threaten me again. It's incredibly rude of a gentleman such as you. Or should I say a filthy half breed." I snarled and Kagome gasped behind me. What did she expect? I have cat- I mean dog ears, dammit. "You've insulted me beyond belief and even more destroyed my hair. Your friend will never know her own memory again."

"Not if I can help it!" I lunged for her, but she was already ten feet away giggling malevolently.

"If you kill me, how will you retrieve the poor girl's memory?" she chided.

"I'll figure it out!"

"Inuyasha calm down! She's out of her mind, but right! We need her alive to retrieve Kagome's memory!" Miroku shouted.

Sango chimed in, "It's not worth it!"

"Feh. In what world?" I swung Tetsusaiga again, this time unleashing the Windscar. The blades of golden light swept over the girl, incinerating her tiny body on impact. She disintegrated into nothing.

I turned, sheathing Tetsusaiga, to face the others. Miroku and Sango were shaking their heads in disappointment and Kagome… well she was staring at me with wide eyes, an incredulous look on her face.

"See something ya like, wench?" I asked.

She clenched her fists. "You just _destroyed_ my last hope of _ever_ regaining my memory!" she screeched. "Who do you think you are?"

The blood drained from my face and my heart skipped a beat. "Kagome I-"

Her hands unclenched and her head fell forward. "Just forget it." She spun, her whole body somehow drooping, and slowly began to trudge towards the path leading back to the village. "I'm going."

I turned my back to her and scoffed. "Good luck finding the village."

"I never said I was going back with you," she whispered.

Just as I began to protest, Kagome screamed shrilly. I immediately spun to find the girl (whose clothes were burned off I might add) glaring at me and practically frothing at the mouth. I vaguely heard Sango scrambling to cover Miroku's eyes to spare us all his womanizing, but I was way too focused on the girl to notice.

I ran over to Kagome, shielding her from the girl with my body and quickly pulled Tetsusaiga from its sheath once again, brandishing it in a flash of yellow light.

The girl's previously grey eyes suddenly widened to literally the size of sand dollars and burned a dazzling gold. "Suffer my wrath."

Kagome instantly grabbed the back of my haori with a hand, her fingers trembling. "Yeah, that'll be the day," I said, sardonically.

The girl raised her palms to the sky, beams of white light that I instantly recognized shooting from her hands.

"Inuyasha," Kagome said worriedly.

"It's okay," I said, uncharacteristically gentle. "This girl is just a pathetic wannabe demoness, who doesn't actually have any real power."

A large sphere of white light began to form around the girl, pulsing every couple of seconds or so. The ball began expanding and rose into the sky, girl and all, until both nearly touched the tops of the trees. With each throb, another wave of sheer power rolled off the sphere and made my clothes cling to my skin with static electricity. The air crackled.

The light shooting from her hands was the same from the night that Kagome lost her memory.

"But just to be safe, don't let go," I said. Kagome raised her other hand up and gripped tighter onto my haori, pressing her face into my back.

And then the circle exploded, engulfing everything, including us, in its path.

As soon as it had blinded us all into oblivion, the light was gone, leaving us to blink away an array of stars.

"Miroku," I shouted, hoping he hadn't somehow managed to get himself killed. "You got any idea what's going on?"

There was a slight cough, a rustle of grass and then a raspy, "No."

I turned to find him and Sango lying flat on their backs in the middle of the field a good ten yards away. "And how the hell did you get all the way over there?" I asked.

"If I knew, do you honestly think I would be over here?" he shot back.

"SILENCE!"

All of us turned in unison to find the girl levitating in a blue sphere, her body in a T-shape.

And then she began to talk.

"**Two choices conveyed from light,**

**Contributed at your disposal.**

**Two children of the father of coat white,**

**The cataclysmic proposal. **

**In the land beyond the sun's reach,**

**The corporeal elixir rests.**

**Upon entrance capture the stone screech,**

**Failure to do so-annihilate the quest.**

**Under the velvet of darkest night,**

**Cripple the blind passage.**

**Agile and quick your flight,**

**One soul death salvage.**

**Bring me the prize at the spire,**

**All assuming you survive.**

**Acceptance of the correct object dire,**

**If you wish your friend alive.**

**A single, second way to return the lost,**

**Is easier said than done.**

**The realization of the cost,**

**Be given by only one.**

**The price cannot be paid,**

**By simple vow alone.**

**The ultimate promise must be made,**

**Away a flames heart blown.**

**Thoughtful concern will be the downfall,**

**Of the one who cares the most.**

**The loss of timeless, eternal call,**

**Be nothing, but a ghost**

**In a sphere of crimson blaze,**

**The portal shall seal.**

**Dormant it will lay for a myriad of days,**

**Until the touch of pure blood releases the wheel.**

**When secure embrace of mind,**

**Slightly loosens grip.**

**The bearer of the curse blind,**

**Reality will slip.**

**The color of moon on water,**

**The glow of candles light.**

**The closest will be slaughtered,**

**Fire in the night."**

And then she was gone. Vanished into nothing. Again.

"Well that was cryptic," I said.

"I do believe we have a prophecy on our hands," Miroku responded.

The only words that came to mind were, "Well, shit."

**Review? Make my day? Please?**

** Next chapter will probably be kinda short. Well shorter than the usual length I should say.**

** Excerpt: "This ain't normal fire!"**


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